Silverwing High
by lilirose101
Summary: Silverwing High is high school designated for kids with super powers, aka mutants. But what happens when the peaceful school invites exchange students from the higher class school Darkwing High? Will they be friends? Will new rivalries be born? Will mostly focus on deathshipping, blindshipping, thiefshipping, polarshipping and siblingshipping.
1. First day

**Hello everyone! This is my first original story so hopefully you'll enjoy it! XD Also, just a small note, the one referred as "Bakura" in this chapter is Ryou bakura and not his yami.**

 **Chapter 1: First day**

* * *

Welcome to Silverwing high! A school for students with special abilities located on an island south east of Japan. Teenagers chosen by fate were given special abilities but also had something taken from them in return and this was called a 'consequence'. There had been a rise in demonic activity in the world and the monsters could only be stopped by the 'mutants', which was the given name to humans with special abilities, although it was quite exaggerated. Said mutants with strong powers and bad attitudes were sent to Darkwing High, a school located on an island north east of Japan, whilst the ones with weaker abilities attended Silverwing High.

This was the case for Yugi Moto, a 16 year old boy with the ability to pass through objects. He had always been picked on by the school bullies, but one day, his new ability had allowed him to easily escape their clutches. This however, came at a terrible cost. A month later, Yugi's father died in a car crash and it was around that time he received an invitation to attended the private school Silverwing High. Surprisingly, Yugi met a lot of his friends from his old school whom he had no clue had abilities as well. There was Joey, the hot head with firepower, Tea who could shapeshift into anyone she's ever touched, Duke who could become super stretchy, and Tristan who had super strength. Although the school rules strictly forbid the sharing of ability and consequence, some were physically obvious. For instance, Tristan's hair gave him super strength, but as a consequence, he went bald.

Yugi used to hang out with his friends all the time, but since they got to the island, Tea only hanged out with Serenity, and Tristan and Duke had become obsessed with Joey's sister. They would constantly fight over her but the girl could easily escape by turning herself and whatever she touched invisible. There was also a new student, Bakura, who had arrived from England. Yugi and Joey quickly became friends with the boy.

It was the beginning of the school year and also its second year opening. Everyone was starting eleventh grade, except Serenity that is, who was a year younger. (The school was opened to students from grade 9 to 12) It was a Monday morning and as it was custom, every student made their way to the gymnasium and were seated in the bleachers. The principal as usual, wore his bright red vest and stepped behind the small podium where everybody could see him. He tapped gently on the mic to get the chatty teenagers' attention and coughed a couple times before starting.

"Hello students," Pegasus' voice resonated through the speakers. "I would like to greet you all to Silverwing High once again! Last year went wonderfully smooth and I hope to have another great year with you all." Students were already getting bored as Pegasus introduced all of the staff members again. Of course, everyone would pay attention to the beautiful nurse Cecelia. She had golden blond hair and deep blue eyes that made every boy's heart flutter. But no one ever dared make a move on the lady seeing as she was the Principal's wife… The last teacher to be introduced was Ms. Ishizu Ishtar. The usually calm and happy woman seemed tense for some reason which struck Yugi as odd. Was something going on that he didn't know about?

"I now have a very special announcement to make." Said Pegasus. "As you know, our neighbors from the north's abilities are centered mostly on strength and that can sometimes let it get to their head." There was a burst of laughter from the audience. "Yes well, their principal Dartz and I have decided that it might be good for them to experience something different so we invited those which… how should I put this… have been very difficult so to say, to our school. That way they can be influenced by your good will." Every student gasped in their seat and turned to worry with their friends. 'How could he do this?!' Yugi thought. 'He invited the rudest, self-absorbed and most powerful students from _that_ school! They're going to eat us alive!'

Pegasus could hear the worry in their whispered voices. "Fear not my students," he said holding out his hand for silence. "We have taken measures to insure you will all be safe and that these students will behave themselves. Speaking of which, they will be arriving tomorrow and I expect you treat them all with respect. This year we've also organised a special week of activities to make their transition here a pleasant one!" Murmurs of excitement echoed but Pegasus didn't stop to listen. "Wednesday there'll be a tournament and whoever wins will get to go on a rescue mission with a known mutant, isn't that exciting?" Whispers had now turned into loud chatters. "Yes I can see you're all very excited. Thursday we've organised a carnival and Friday will be a Ball! Literally. And it's mandatory so I expect to see all of your young faces there." The crowd had quiet down into disappointed or angered mumbles. Many were not pleased about attending a stupid dance. "This concludes the morning meeting," Pegasus continued cheerfully, "class will start in thirty minutes. Enjoy your recess!"

Yugi hadn't bothered getting up. It was stupid to be swept up in a huge crowd making its way out of a single door. "What do you guys think about our new guests?" Bakura asked nervously. "I don't know about you guys but this was a safe haven against bullies for me, and now there's a whole new patch of them coming…" Said Yugi pulling his legs close to his chest. "I'm not worried about 'em," said Joey as he lay against the wall with his hands thrown behind his head, "I'll protect you guys if they ever try to pick on ya! And besides, this tournament sure sounds interesting with all those powerful new guys and all!" "You're not planning on entering that are you?!" Asked Bakura wide-eyed with worry. "Of course!" Shouted Joey. "I must be the most powerful mutant here, why shouldn't I enter da tournament?" "I sure hope you know what you're doing." Yugi whispered as a hand was placed on his shoulder. "Don't worry buddy," Joey said confidently, "everyone is making a too big deal outta this thing, I'll be fine." Yugi nodded and rose from his seat to make his way towards the exit with his friends.

* * *

 **So there you have it! Hope you guys liked it, I plan on making this a pretty long series with about 25 chapters... ya... I don't plan on being one of those people that start something and don't finish it so don,t you worry! ;) I've already got over ten written up so I'll be posting those shortly too.**

 **Please let me know what you think, I love knowing what I'm doing right and wrong so that I can improve!**


	2. The new students

**Now you get to meet the famous students from Darkwing High! WARNING: I refer to Yami Marik in this story as "Marik"**

 **Chapter 2: The new students**

* * *

Yugi made his way to his locker which luckily, this year was next to Bakura and Joey. "Today's the big day," said Yugi before opening his locker with trembling hands. "I wonder what they'll look like." "I can totally picture 'em tall and muscular and dressed in leather like motorcyclists!" commented Joey earning a fit of giggles from his friends. A student suddenly ran along the hall shouting repetitively: "They're here! They're here!" Yugi and his friends' blood froze in their veins. The time had finally come and none were ready to face it, not even Joey who thought he could handle the stress of the new powerful arrivals. They turned around slowly towards the entrance of the hallway to find shadows making their way on the dusty floor before turning to reveal their owners. The firsts to appear belonged to three guys and a girl. The clear leader of the group indeed wore a leather jacket with matching pants and a pair of black boots. He wasn't very tall, but his cold red-pinkish eyes were fierce and intimidating, and of course, you couldn't forget about his black hair which stood up in points with magenta tinged ends and his blond bangs. On his left was a tall dark man with sandy blond hair that also stood up in all direction on his head. He was tall, maybe six feet, and he was quite built for his age. He wore a simple black tank top with beige khakis, and also had gold ornaments around his wrists and ears. On the leader's right was an even taller guy, probably 6'2. He wore a black outfit topped with a long white trench coat and his hair was brown and smoothly gelled back. His right arm lay around the waist of a tall woman with wavy blond hair. She was beautiful with light purple eyes which put a blush on Joey's cheeks when she glanced at him. The woman was no doubt the guy's girlfriend, but that wasn't going to stop the blond from having fantasies about her.

The four newcomers had sent chills down all of the students' spines. None of them smiled and had dead serious expressions unless it was to grin. This year was definitely going to be different. 'I wonder if that's all of them.' Yugi thought as he stared at the four students who had now reached the end of the hall. "Y-Yugi, look!" Bakura whispered as he pulled on Yugi's vest. Three more students made their way through the entrance and thought they were very short, they were no less intimidating than the firsts. The one on the left had a terrible mushroom style hair cut with yellow glasses to contrast with his aqua hair. He wore a green coat and like him, the guy on his right also had a green jacket. He had long brown hair with a red hat to top it off. Finally, the one on the far right was quiet and reserved unlike the others who snickered about frightening the students. His hair was long and dark and there was nothing odd about his outfit, he didn't even seem to care about his surroundings.

As Weevil and Rex made their way past Yugi and his friends, they stopped and turned around, eyeing the trio carefully. Weevil got really close to Yugi's face before asking: "What's your name short stack?" His breath reeked of garlic and Yugi couldn't help but cover his nose in disgust. Big mistake. Weevil grabbed Yugi by his collar and lifted him a foot off the ground. "You insignificant little insect!" he spat as he slammed the boy against the locker. "Leave him alone!" Joey shouted ready to help his friend, but the other boy Rex knocked him down a few feet away. "Now, now," he said waving around his finger and exposing his shark-like teeth to the blond. "It's rude to interrupt someone who's giving a lesson." "Please, we don't want any trouble." Bakura said nervously, but the short brunette didn't agree and pushed the pale boy against his locker. "Aren't you cute when you're trying to be brave, Snowflake." Rex said mockingly. "I know a great way to get you to open up, if you know what I mean…" Rex grinned as he licked his sharp teeth to further his sexual intentions, to Bakura's dismay. "Now then, where were we?" Weevil paused as he remembered what he was about to do before being distracted by his partner. "Ah yes!" He pulled his fist back ready to land a blow. But his action was swiftly stopped as a powerful hand grabbed his elbow and pushed him onto the floor. The same person swung his leg around and kicked Rex in the stomach which landed him a place next to Weevil.

"What are you two idiots doing now?" A deep voice asked looking down on the two boys. "What are we doing?" Said Rex. "What are you doing Atem?! Let us have our fun!" "You both know you're supposed to behave while you're here. It's not my job to babysit you." Atem spat back. He was visibly annoyed by the two. "Very well." Weevil said as he dusted himself off. "But don't think this is over short stack!" he said pointing at Yugi. "Ya and you'll see me again soon enough snowflake!" Rex said to Bakura before following his friend who had already begun walking away. Joey was dumbfounded, this Atem guy showed up out of nowhere before he could even make it off the floor!

Atem was about to leave as well when a hand tugged on his jacket. Yugi immediately let go as he realised he was probably going to get hit for that action alone, but surprisingly the hit never came. Atem simply looked back at the small boy and asked: "What?" His tone wasn't cold or menacing, but it still sent a shiver down Yugi's spine. "I uh, just wanted to thank you. Atem was it?" he said so low it was almost a whisper. Atem finally turned to face the boy. "What's your name?" he asked in the same tone as before. "Y-Yugi!" "Well Yugi, you should be careful, those two often mean what they say." And with that Atem turned his heels and walked back to the gang waiting for him at the other side of the hall.

Atem was surprised. He had never been thanked before and it felt weird, especially since his intention wasn't to save those weaklings, but rather teach those worms a lesson. Naturally, he was curious when he heard the ruckus behind him and wouldn't have done anything had it not been for the short boy with his exact hair style. And now that he had met him, he was curious to find out more about this 'Yugi'.

* * *

 **Ooooooh what will happen next I wonder! XD**

 **I hope you liked it or wish to comment or review, please be my guest!**


	3. Mokuba's fresh start

**So there you have it, the first siblingshipping in my story, but it won't be a major couple, fair warning ;)**

 **Chapter 3: Mokuba's fresh start**

* * *

Mokuba sighed. Weevil and Rex were up to their dirty tricks again. Frankly he wondered why he still hung out with those two creeps since he didn't enjoy violence. When he had been accepted to Darkwing High, he thought he could finally spend time with his brother who was always too busy for him, but when he got there, Seto would always ignore him. When he learned of the exchange program with Silverwing High, he jumped at the chance to get away from all the violence and disrespect and pulled a few strings to be enlisted. Now here he was! Walking away from the scene his 'friends' were about to cause with a mini Atem and a skinny white boy.

He casually made his way to his math class and wasn't surprised to be the first one there, after all he always enjoyed being early. He sat next to a window and gazed out at the view below before he heard a light voice speak to him. "Hello, what's your name?" Mokuba turned to see the owner of the voice and blushed at the beauty before him. This girl had long brown hair with gorgeous green eyes. "What's your name?" She asked again, still so politely. "M-Mokuba." The boy stuttered before shaking her hand. "Nice to meet you Mokuba, I'm Serenity." She smiled and slightly tilted her head sideways which made her look even cuter. Damn this girl was pretty! "Are you one of the exchange students?" She asked with a smile still on her face. "Yes, but violence isn't really my thing." "That's good." A door slammed behind Serenity which caught Mokuba by surprise. He hadn't even noticed the other students and the teacher enter the classroom. Damn, he was really hoping to get to know this girl a little more before the class started.

Math had always proven to be easy for Mokuba who honestly quite enjoyed it. When he occasionally glanced at Serenity, he could see the confusion in her eyes, clearly she didn't understand the lesson. A light bulb popped atop the genius's head as he saw an open door. When class was over, he turned to his neighbor. "You alright? You looked pretty confused back there." Mokuba said trying not to sound too forward. Serenity still offered her best smile. "Yeah, well I guess I've never really been good in math…" "If you want, I could help you." Mokuba offered though he wasn't expecting to get anything out of it, but figured he'd try anyway. The boy was gifted with a super brain, but as a consequence he became really short and his brother grew taller, it hardly seemed fair. His ability had also allowed him to skip a year so not only was he slightly shorter than the beautiful girl, but he was also a year younger. Mokuba was genuinely surprised when his crush hadn't turned him down. "Sure, why don't we meet under the cherry blossom tree behind the cafeteria? It's a nice place and very quiet for studying." Mokuba was speechless so he nodded enthusiastically. "Great! I need to go find my brother so I'll see you later, ok?" Serenity waved goodbye as she exited the classroom.

Mokuba wrapped his hands behind his head and smiled though he couldn't relish his pleasure long. In the farthest seats in the back of the classroom he could hear Weevil and Rex's snickering. Damn, he forgot he shared classes with those two. Oh well, _he_ was the one with a date. "I sure hope my brother gets along well with hers." He thought before leaving for his next class.

* * *

"Nyeh! I hate you Koiba!" Joey spat in the tall rich boy's face. "My name is not Koiba!" Seto angrily shouted back. Gym class had barely started and the two already had it out for each other. Since Seto and Mai's classes required them to use their abilities, the school board had no choice but to gather the strongest mutants into a single class, even if they were a year younger. And so, Joey, Tristan and Duke had been forced to take the same class as the obnoxious 12th graders. Seto and Mai were already in the gym throwing hoops when the 11th graders arrived. "Wow that Mai chick is hot!" Duke drooled but Tristan immediately hushed his friend. "Idiot, she's with Seto Kaiba, the guy would kill you if he heard you say that." Joey overheard the boys whispering and couldn't help but smirk. Sure it was true enough that Seto would kick his ass, but it would be worth it just to get a chance to talk with the beautiful woman.

Joey straightened his posture and walked confidently over to Mai who was standing next to Seto. "Hello," Joey said offering his best smile, "I know you're new so I figured I'd introduce myself. I'm Joey." Seto knocked away the hand the boy was extending to Mai. "Oh please," he said rolling his eyes, "you only came here to flirt with my girlfriend. Go away will you!" "Seto that's rude!" Mai turned angrily towards her boyfriend. "Look," Joey said throwing his hands back, "I only wanted to make you both feel welcomed, but since I seem to be causing you so much trouble I'll just leave." Seto was insulted, the twerp acted so cool as he turned and walked away without a second glance, that was his thing! His anger was poured down into the basketball in his hand, enveloping it with ice before he threw it with all his might at the blond brat. Mai tried to stop him, but the rich boy didn't listen, luckily, Joey heard Mai's scream and dodge the crystallised ball. "What the fuck man!" Joey cried as he hit the ground. He immediately got back up, but the taller man grabbed his collar before he could do anything. "You stay away from me, but more specifically, stay away from Mai!" he threatened but Joey wasn't intimidated and also grabbed Seto's collar. "What's your problem?!" The blond spat back. "I don't like you Joey, you clearly don't have a brain in that thick head of yours, so why don't you be smart for a change and not talk back to me! Get out of my sight you pest!" "Nyeh! I hate you Koiba!" Joey spat in the tall rich boy's face. "My name is not Koiba!" Seto angrily shouted back. He would have struck the smaller boy had the gym teacher not interfered right then and there.

* * *

 **Please comment or review! Nothing would make me happier!**


	4. Powerless to act

**Hello there! Just a head's up, chapters are going to become much longer from here on out, hope that alright with you guys! I'm trying to upload these chapters as fast as I can, but it's so long when you have to spellcheck everything! Also, I wasn't planning on naming these, I just figured what the heck since I created my account :P Anyways, enjoy!**

 **Chapter 4: Powerless to act**

* * *

Seto simply infuriated Mai! She had gotten so worked up during gym class that she went as far as to shift into a Harpie (which just so happened to be her ability) and took the ball from her boyfriend… when they were playing on the same team! Honestly, she couldn't remember the last time he hadn't pissed her off, but today was the cream of the puff! Mai had never been happy at Darkwing High, there was no one she trusted enough to confess her Consequence to, not even Seto. She hoped things would be different at Silverwing High, she could try to be nice for a change, maybe even make some new friends… but no! Her boyfriend just _had_ to pick a fight with the first guy to introduce himself to her, willingly even! Most people were scared of her, but not that blond boy, he didn't even fear Seto which was kind of a turn on. When the bell indicating the end of class rang, Mai bolted for the change room, not able to stand being one more second in the same room as her douchebag boyfriend.

Mai took a quick shower, then braided her hair sideways before switching to her next class. She made her way down the hall towards her locker when a familiar face showed up a few steps away. "Hey there!" Joey said scratching the back of his head nervously. Mai blinked, was he really talking to her? She looked over her shoulder to see if anyone else was near, but there wasn't. She turned back towards the boy and gestured to her face. "Me?" she asked confused and Joey nodded. "Ya _you_! I don't see anyone else around!" Mai took a step back and lowered her eyes. "You really shouldn't be talking to me, my boyfriend would kill you." "Nah, let 'im try! You kinda went all out on him earlier so I wanted to make sure you were alright. It's always easier to deal with anger rather than sadness, but you can never say what you really mean." "I'm not sure I follow, what's your point exactly?" Joey blushed ever so slightly. This woman was so beautiful, she made butterflies dance in his stomach and made his throat all scratchy. "W-well, my consequence has made it so that I can't think things through without getting hot headed, so I understand what it's like to feel angry all the time… I-if you ever w-wanted to t-talk a-about it, I'm h-here…" Joey couldn't help but stutter his words, she had that effect on him. He was expecting her to flip him off or maybe laugh herself silly, but her features remained delicate. In truth, Mai was shocked, this guy just broke the biggest rule in school! He told her his consequence… but why? Telling someone his or her consequence is incredibly difficult, but for Joey it seemed so natural! He didn't even know her and yet he trusted her enough to confess his consequence! Mai gently lowered her eyelids and smiled sweetly at the boy. "Thank you Joseph." Joey turned bright red, nobody ever used his real name because he hated it, but somehow Mai's soothing voice made it sound nice… "Okwellseeyoulaterbye!" Joey's nervousness got the better of him, he lowered his head and walked away rapidly before he could say anything stupid to ruin the moment.

Mai chuckled, that blond boy sure was funny when he was shy and he even managed to make her smile, something she desperately needed. She continued to make way towards her locker when she saw two girls trying to put up a large poster on a bulletin board **.** The shorter of the two was holding up a corner of the poster with one arm and handing a stapler to the other girl. "Can you reach it?" The shorter one asked. "No it's a little too high." The other replied still trying to stretch out her arm to reach the top of the bulletin board. Normally, Mai would just ignore these distractions, but she promised herself to be nice and try to make friends at Silverwing High, so that's what she was going to do. "Need any help ladies?" Mai didn't know what to expect, she wasn't used to being nice, but when the two replied with a smile it made her feel really good somehow. Being a few inches taller than the two had its advantages, not to mention the fact she was wearing a pair of high heels boots. The poster was up in no time and Mai gave herself a satisfying nod, it was a cinch! "Thank you," the taller one said, "it was really nice of you to help. Aren't you one of the new exchanged students? What's your name? I'm Tea and this is Serenity." The smaller girl bowed. "Er… yes I am, and my name is Mai. Nice to meet you both." This Tea girl sure liked to ask questions, but at least she was nice. Mai turned her attention back to the poster she put up and examined it: on it was half the upper half of the principal's body holding a golden trophy and an envelope. "It's for the big tournament tomorrow, anyone who wants to sign up can do so right here." Tea said as though she read the blond's mind.

Mai raised a brow, she heard about this tournament back at Darkwing High, but thought it was just a joke. Now that she knew it wasn't, she was tempted to see just how strong she had become. Hum… "Any of you got a pen?" Serenity pulled one out of her bag and handed it to Mai who quickly signed her name on the small inscription sheet. "If you want you can also sign your name and your date's name on the other sheet so that you can be introduced at the dance!" Serenity said joyfully gesturing to the sheet next to the first. This wasn't supposed to be difficult for Mai, but for some reason, she couldn't bring herself to write neither hers nor Seto's name of the lined sheet, but why? She stared at her pen, trying to remember all the reasons why she loved her boyfriend, but couldn't find any. Panic invaded her thoughts, she needed to remember at least one good moment they had together, but all that came to mind were cruel words he would spit at her out of anger. Couples fight all the time, but had her and Seto's relationship gotten to the point where there was nothing left to salvage?! She needed to see him even though he probably didn't want to see _her_. Mai looked frantically around her searching for Seto's face in the small groups of people when she finally spotted his long white trench coat a few feet away. She ran up to him, completely forgetting about her new friends, and hugged him from behind. It must have caught him by surprise because he turned around in a second and grabbed her wrist in his tight cold grip. "What do _you_ want?" he barked refusing to let go even though he saw she was in pain. "I… I need to talk to you." Mai said innocently. Seto threw her hand away and let out a "Humph!" before dismissing her with his hand. "Not now, I have class." He turned on his heels and walked away as though he hadn't been bothered, hurting his girlfriend once again.

Mai held back a tear. It hurt to see the man who once treated her with such kindness now lash out at her every time he was pissed off. What was she supposed to do? She refused to go to class, she would be too distracted to focus on the lesson so what was the point of going? The blond girl made her way towards the nearest exit and saw a flower garden not far away, she forgot this school had those. Mai entered the maze of flowers and sat on a bench made of stone. Thinking about Seto exhausted her more than she wanted to admit, she knew love was complicated, but was it supposed to hurt too? She closed her eyes and let her thoughts be cleared by the sun's warm embrace when it was suddenly replaced by the shadow of a man looking down at her.

"What do you want?" Mai asked coldly without meaning to. "Man you really are the snow queen!" Joey chuckled scratching the back of his head, but Mai raised a brow. "You know, from the Disney movie?" "Never heard of it." Joey gasped covering his mouth with both hands as he took a step back. "How can you not have seen it?! It's so popular and has been advertised pretty much _everywhere_! I can't believe you don't know who OLAF is!" Mai crossed her arms and legs, giving her a selfish air. "I don't know what kind of freedoms you have here at Silverwing High, but back at Darkwing we are always committed to our studies. We don't have time for such nonsense." "Ya, I guess that's why you're skipping class then huh?" Mai uttered an "humph" as she turned her head and shut her eyes. She didn't mean to be rude, but she was so used to behaving that way when she was angry that her old habits just kicked in. She was surprised, happy, but still surprised, when Joey didn't leave. Needless to say he wasn't like the other students here. "Sorry, didn't mean ta hurt ya feelings Mai." He said sitting down next to her and scratching the back of his head again. "No _I'm_ sorry, you didn't do anything wrong. I'm just… not good with people." "Well I think you're doing fine." "Really?!" Her purple eyes were almost begging as she closely stared into Joey's hazel orbs. "Of course Mai, I just don't understand why you put up with Kaiba. I saw the fight so I came to find you. Did he hurt you?" "Oh! You saw that? No, of course not…" she waved her hand dismissively however allowing her sleeve to slip down and exposing her bruised wrist. Joey immediately caught sight of it and gently took her wrist into his hands. "This isn't nothing Mai! He hurt you, that's unacceptable!" "Joey please!" Mai put her hands atop Joey's to prevent him from leaving and going after her boyfriend. His hands were hot from the heat he was releasing from his anger, but it wasn't painful, in fact it kind of felt good. It was different from the feeling she would get from Seto, and she felt guilty for not wanting to let go of another's hands.

Joey wanted to hurt the man, but not if that meant hurting his beautiful girlfriend. For the first time he truly wanted to protect something, or rather someone, and felt powerless to act on it. The more he talked with Mai, the more he connected with her and he couldn't help but feel strong emotions he couldn't yet describe. "I'll fight for you Mai." he said letting go of her arm and standing up. "But Joey…" "No let me finish. I'm going to enter da tournament and beat Kaiba, I promise!" Mai was amazed, no one ever stood up for her before, but of course, her pride would prevent her from accepting any sort of help. "Joey you realise that you'll be fighting off against some of the strongest mutants from Darkwing right? The chances of you getting paired up with Seto are slim, you might even end up fighting me." "It won't come to that. Trust me Mai, I'll teach Kaiba a lesson for you!" Somehow, arguing with Joey seemed pointless, but it didn't bother Mai. It made her happy to know there was at least someone out there looking out for her.

* * *

 **So there you have it! Dang Seto, you cold hearted (I'll stop there!) lol**

 **Also big thanks to Queen of Yugioh for the encouraging words! Those are always appreciated! :)**


	5. Gym class

**As promised, a longer chapter! Also this is the first thiefshipping appearance! It will become more important as the series progresses, just saying! Sorry if my paragraphs are big and chunky, it's how I wrote it on word and I don't really feel like changing the format so bare with me please :)**

 **Chapter 5: Gym class**

* * *

The 11th graders had gathered in the gymnasium for their Combat Class where there were fifteen three m² mats spread all over the floor. Last year, they were taught the basic fighting strategies, but this year promised to be more intense, especially with the presence of two Darkwing students. Everyone gathered around the small teacher with the impressive built who waited patiently in the middle of the room.

"Alright listen up everyone," the short man said his voice lacking emotion. "My name is Levi Ackerman **(1)** , but you can all call me Sir or Sir Ackerman. In this class I shall teach you how to fight the demonic creatures without the use of your abilities because they don't always serve you in battle. Today, I shall test your endurance and strength, you have each been given practice jerseys, please put them on." Yugi and Bakura had both received a red Jersey, but whereas it was a perfect fit on Bakura, it was knee-length on Yugi. The teacher continued his speech on how he used to fight the creatures, but Yugi was too distracted staring at the beautiful Egyptian who had saved him from Weevil. He was even more attractive now that his strong muscles were revealed by the lack of long sleeves and pants. Of course Yugi was merely observing the boy, after all he had the biggest crush on Tea, the hot girl standing next to him. He couldn't be gay… could he? He was mildly disappointed Atem wasn't looking back at him, but that had to be expected. Why would anyone ever give _him_ a second glance? That last thought somewhat brought Yugi back to reality as he noticed for the first time his Jersey being shaken vigorously by Bakura. "Yugi are you listening?" his friend asked and Yugi finally nodded. "Have you seen Joey? He still hasn't shown up to class." Yugi was now as worried as Bakura as his eyes searched the crowd of students, but couldn't find the blond. "You don't think he could have gotten into trouble, do you?!" Yugi said loud enough to get the teacher's attention. "Shorty in the back," his voice boomed towards the tri-colored hair boy, "do you not see the importance in defending yourself against a stronger opponent?" "Uh… yes sir! Very much sir!" "Well since you think you know enough to ignore my warnings, why don't you give the class a demonstration?" He pointed at another student in the opposite direction and the tall muscly man made his way next to Levi. The students cleared an area around the mat before the short man gestured to Yugi with his finger curling back towards himself in a repetitive motion. Bakura hid his mouth with his hands and mumbled "I'm so sorry, it's all my fault!" Tea on the other hand, was quite enthusiastic. "Go Yugi! You can do it!" She cheered making the short boy's cheeks flush pink.

He slowly made his way to the mat where he stood facing Ushio, a bully with giant eyebrows. Levi's low and monotone voice went on to explain: "You have 2 minutes to knock the other one out of the square mat, there will be no use of abilities and you will start when you hear the whistle." Yugi immediately took a fighting stance, knowing he would probably be defending more than attacking. He had to be smart, Ushio was really strong… maybe he could use that against him. His eyes searched for Atem once more and was met back with the Egyptian's gaze, giving him the confidence he needed to fight. Yugi had barely heard the whistle go off when Ushio threw his first fist. Yugi dodged just in time by bending his back into a bridge and instinctively brought his legs up to flip backwards, kicking the sturdy one under the chin. Ushio took a few steps back and covered his face with both hands, yelping in pain. "Oh you've done it now kid!" He threatened through gritted teeth. He launched himself onto Yugi throwing a fit of punches and kicks but never landing a blow. The small boy dodged each attack or would block them with his forearm or knee. Yugi then avoided a punch by twirling sideways and pulling the big guy forward to which he fell close to the edge of the mat. Ushio quickly regained his composure and got back up on his feet. He spun on his heels and was ready for round two, but the shorty had beaten him to it. Ushio had barely finished turning around when he felt a sharp pain in his private area, the squirt had the audacity to strike him in the gut with his elbow before kicking him in the ankles! Ushio was in too much pain to counter and fell back on the hard floor, hands tightly wrapped around his privates. He rolled over with a high pitched whine, leaving the mass of students in a chorus of laughter. It was finally interrupted by a loud slow clapping of hands. "Well Yugi, I must say I'm impressed." Levi said after he finished his slow clap. "I never imagined you of all people would be able to defeat Ushio, but that doesn't mean you're off the hook. I don't want to catch you interrupting my speeches ever again, understand?" "Y-yes sir!" Yugi quickly made his way back to his friends. "Thank goodness you weren't hurt back there! I was really worried!" Bakura whispered with a hand over his chest. Tea brushed past him and arm locked the boy before giving him a noogie. "Nah, I wasn't worried! I knew you had him in the bag Yugi!" Tea cheered though in truth she was probably even more worried than Bakura was. She could have gone on, but the teacher started speaking again, and it was wiser not to interrupt him.

"Take a look at your Jerseys. They are one of two colors: red or blue. Find a partner wearing a different color than you and practice the same exercise you've just witnessed. Same rules apply." Yugi looked at Bakura and then at Tea. They were unfortunately both wearing red, the same color as him. People were running around crazy trying to find a partner that Yugi hadn't noticed Atem making his way towards them until Tea pointed him out. "Oh my gosh it's Hotty Mc'Tan! He's so cool I can't believe he's coming this way to talk to us!" She said shaking Yugi's arm. The poor boy would have rejoiced at the skin contact had she not been doing it out of the excitement of seeing somebody else. "Hi!" Tea said once Atem stood before them, but the Egyptian ignored her and turned to the smaller boy. "You fight quite well," he said with a smile… well that was new… "I would appreciate it if you agreed to be my partner. People here don't appear to be very strong and unfortunately I cannot pick Marik as my partner." The man appeared behind him at the mention of his name and nodded. Both were wearing a blue Jersey, meaning their partner needed to have a red one. "So what do you say?" Atem insisted and Yugi nodded returning a smile.

Once they had left, Marik approached the boy with fluffy white hair. "I would also appreciate it if you agreed to be _my_ partner." Bakura probably would have been better off fighting against the beaten Ushio, but something was pulling him towards the Egyptian. The man was drop dead gorgeous and not to mention his muscles stood out quite clearly under his too small Jersey. He murmured a "sure" and let the taller man guide him towards an empty mat, leaving Tea with no other choice but to partner up with Ushio, to her dismay. Once they had reached the mat, Bakura pulled out an elastic and tied his hair back into a ponytail exposing his muscly arms to the Egyptian. Marik had never truly looked at Bakura until the beginning of class and that's when he felt he knew him from somewhere. Perhaps they had met before… It was the main reason why Marik wanted to partner up with him, the fact that they were the only ones left aside from Tea, was just an added bonus. "Are you ready?" The pale boy asked making Marik snap back to reality. "I am, but you're not." Bakura gave him a puzzled look, but understood when the Egyptian gestured to his feet. How embarrassing! His shoe lace was untied! Bakura bent over and started forming the knot, but for some reason, this sight was giving Marik a headache and he quickly slammed his eye and forehead with his hand as his vision became blurry.

* * *

 _Marik stood firmly with his arms crossed as he watched the pale boy tie his shoelace. "Are you almost done Bakura?" Bakura… was that the boy's name? It felt strange, Marik's voice wasn't as deep as it usually was and he couldn't control what he was saying or what he was doing. He was forced to watch as though he was trapped inside somebody else's body… Bakura finally stood up and stared coldly at the man, his eyes had become narrower and his hair wilder. "Geez you're in a hurry." He scowled with his gruff voice. The pale boy was also very different in appearance, his Jersey and shorts were replaced by a long black trench coat over his usual blue and white striped shirt. The gymnasium was also switched out with the inside of a lobby and by the looks of it, they were both standing in the front entrance. "Well come on then!" Bakura snapped which only angered Marik. "Don't tell me what to do!" He retorted throwing his fist around. He followed the dark figure into a cab and stared out the window where he noticed the huge letters hanging above the hotel's entrance: Luxburry Hotel **(2)**. _

* * *

What the hell had Marik just witnessed and why couldn't he remember any of it?! Was it a hallucination? It seemed like the most logical explanation… His headache disappeared and he was surprised to find time had barely passed. Bakura was now standing up and staring at his partner with concerned eyes. "Are you alright?" the boy asked worriedly almost reaching for the taller one's arm, but stopping himself when he spoke back. "Y-yes I'm fine Bakura." "How… How do you know my name?" That's right! The boy had never introduced himself before… did that mean Marik hadn't hallucinated before? Had they actually met? "I think I heard someone call you that …" he said though his lie wasn't far from the truth. "I see… So what's _your_ name?" "Marik…" There was an awkward silence between the two as neither knew what to say next, but it was Marik who broke the silence. "We should probably start the exercise before Sir Ackerman punishes us both!" The pale boy nodded and watched as his opponent took a fighting stance. With all his gold jewelry removed, his muscles appeared even bigger! It slightly intimidated the pale boy who knew his capabilities were quite low, but he took a fighting stance nonetheless and elegantly dodged Marik's attacks when they came. He surprised even himself with successfully hitting Marik in the stomach, though he quickly apologised for it. Marik chuckled at that and grinned at the boy. "Why are you sorry? This is the whole point of the exercise. You're quite agile Bakura, use that to your advantage."

Marik was right. Bakura had always been picked on by all the kids at his old school for looking effeminate. All that changed when he discovered his ability, it gave him so much freedom and yet his consequence had taken it all away. He remembered going to bed one night, but when he woke up, he found himself in a strange laboratory with a beautiful woman wearing a white coat staring down at him. "How are you feeling?" she asked her voice sweet like chocolate. "W-where am I?" Bakura asked sleepier than worried, had he been drugged?! The woman told him he was on an island south-east of Japan and that she had removed his alter-ego. Bakura was confused so the lady then explained the whole concept of abilities and consequences. Apparently, Bakura's consequence gave him a double personality and that evil spirit had kept him sealed away for two whole months! Bakura had no recollection whatsoever of the time he had lost and was now stuck on this island so far away from his family to start a new life with other people just like him. He thanked the nurse that had helped him, whom he later learned was named Cecelia, and got off the long chair he was lying on. It was at that point he noticed how much his body had changed. He had gotten taller as well as now having noticeable biceps and a six-pack.

Bakura was brought back to reality when he felt himself slammed into the mat by two strong hands. "You should also never let your guard down… I win." Marik said so close to Bakura that he could smell the mint flavored breath that escaped the Egyptian's mouth. The pale boy then noticed his foot had landed outside the mat, damn… he was doing so well… Marik let go of the boy's Jersey and got back on his feet before extending his arm towards him. Bakura lightly grabbed it, but the Egyptian wasn't as gentle. His hand grabbed firmly that of Bakura's and swung him up a little too hard. The pale boy couldn't help being so light, he lost his balance and fell against Marik, but quickly backed away with his face bright pink. Had he not been looking down from embarrassment he would have noticed the Egyptian was also blushing, but luckily it wasn't as visible thanks to his tan. "I-I'm really s-sorry! I didn't mean to-" Bakura stuttered, but was cut off by the Egyptian. "Why do you apologise for everything? You really don't have to." "You're right I'm sorry… Darn it I did it again!" Marik couldn't help but laugh which only embarrassed the timid boy even more. "You're funny Bakura, did you know that?" "Yes well, I'm used to people laughing at me…" Marik immediately shut his mouth and stared into Bakura's saddened eyes. "I didn't mean it as an insult, I'm sorry if it came out that way." He said with more gentleness than he thought himself capable. The boy didn't reply, but offered the Egyptian his best smile, he was happy to know Marik was actually a nice guy underneath his tough guy appearance. "Why don't we try the exercise again?" Marik suggested and Bakura nodded enthusiastically.

The two teenagers took a fighting stance once more and repeated the same exercise, applying the rules Levi occasionally added to make it harder. "Only use one hand!" "Stand on one leg!" Bakura was enjoying himself and so seemed to be Marik, but he was disappointed when the teacher approached them halfway through class to inform the Egyptian he had to leave; Ms. Ishtar requested his presence immediately in her classroom. "Lucky you Bakura, now you'll be fighting me." Levi said to the boy once Marik had left. Crap… Bakura tried not to look frightened but he was terrified of the man and couldn't help trembling. Despite his size, he was probably stronger than both Marik and Atem combined! Great… Speaking of the smaller Egyptian, Atem also seemed to be enjoying fighting Yugi. The boy was quite skilled and even managed to hit him a few times, but Atem was still stronger and always came out the winner. He especially enjoyed it because it meant he got to come in close contact with the smaller boy which the other didn't seem to mind either. He tried not to look disappointed when the bell rang, he really didn't want to stop fighting with Yugi which struck him as odd. He fought with Marik and Seto plenty of times, so why was it different with this boy?

"I guess I'll see you later then." Atem said as he walked with Yugi to the change rooms. "I guess so. Hey, why don't you join us for lunch?" Yugi suggested shyly which brought an instant smile on the Egyptian's face. "I'd love to. I'd just have to check with Marik, but I don't think he'd mind. He didn't seem to hate your friend back there which for him is saying a lot." Yugi and Atem waved goodbye before each entered their respective changing rooms (there are two btw). Yugi wanted to melt, Atem was so hot and now he was going to sit next to him at lunch! He would have fantasized about it more had a panicked Bakura not grabbed him by the shoulders. "Yugi, have you seen my locket?! I left it with my things, but now it's gone!" "Bakura calm down, take a deep breath…" His friend did as told and inhaled and exhaled a couple of times before regaining his composure. "I looked everywhere," he said more calmly, "it's not here. It must have fallen off somewhere…" "Ok, where was the last place you had it?" Bakura's eyes lit up. "In History class!... But what if it's not there?" "Tell you what, go see if it's there and I'll go check in the lost and found after I change." "Thank you Yugi!" Bakura threw his arms around the small boy before rushing out the door ignoring the students that eyed him curiously. Yugi knew Bakura never took off the locket and seeing him this upset over it definitely meant it had sentimental value.

* * *

 **(1) : I just had to throw Levi in here, he fits in so well with my story! Needless to say he's my favorite character from SNK (and for those of you who don't know who that it, he's from the show Attack on Titan, if you haven't seen it, go and watch it right now! It's amazing! XD )**

 **(2) : Luxburry Hotel doesn't exist, I made it up! Though I will be extremely shocked if it does exist! lol**

 **Hope you enjoyed it! Please don't be shy and review/comment!**


	6. Memories

**Morning/Afternoon/Evening everyone! I'm guessing if you've read this far into my story means that it's good? :D i could have easily written this in two chapters but I want to stay faithful to my plan, so there you go, more big chunky paragraphs!**

 **WARNING: My story has been rated M for a reason, NO there is no lemon in this chapter (though maybe later on) but there is a lot of _touching_ if you know what I mean? Without further ado, I give you:**

 **Chapter six: Memories**

* * *

Marik made his way down the empty halls until he found the room he was searching for. He gave the door a gentle knock and upon hearing his sister's voice, he twisted the door handle inwards and peeked his head inside. "Come closer." The dark haired woman said gesturing to a seat right in front of her desk. The tall Egyptian moved closer, but refused to sit down. He stared intently at his sister waiting for her to finish whatever it was she was writing, but unlike her brother, Ishizu was in no hurry. She licked an envelope and set it aside before resting her chin on her knuckles. She could see by the veins popping out of Marik's face that he was becoming impatient and she would have smirked had her pride of professionalism not prevented her from doing so. "I pulled you out of class early for a very important reason." She said slowly and calmly which only irritated the boy even more. "It better be!" he thought as he clench his fists so tight he could feel his nails ripping through his skin. For once he was enjoying being in the presence of someone who didn't fear him, it felt _so_ nice! Not that Atem and Seto feared him, but they also felt the same way he did, well… mostly Atem. Seto didn't really care about other people… but that was aside the point! Marik really liked this Bakura and Ishizu had taken their moment away like she always did with everything Marik enjoyed. He clenched his fists a little tighter until drops of blood slid through his hands and dripped onto the floor. "What is it?" he finally asked through gritted teeth.

Ishizu sighed, "Yami, you don't belong here." _Yami_. That was the name she always called him by, refusing to acknowledge him as her brother. She was still calm, but had a hint of threat in her tone which didn't go unnoticed by Marik, he knew all too well what his sister thought of him. He was a monster, a mistake that needed to be dealt with. He could still remember the day he was born… He woke up in sweat on cold September night on his bedroom floor with a pair of hands shaking him vigorously. He didn't have any memories of his own, but knew his name was Marik and that the woman shaking him was his sister Ishizu. She was crying for some reason… She turned and screamed at the tall Egyptian in the background, "You're lying Odion! Marik can't be dead…" "But… I'm right here…" the boy murmured, but received a hard slap on the cheek. "Shut up!" Ishizu spat. "You're not my brother, you _killed_ my brother! You monster!" She slapped him once more and the panting boy didn't dare speak again. His sister tried multiple times to bring her loving brother back, each time in vain. After a while, the poor woman couldn't stand the sight of the Yami, cursing at him and hitting him when he got on her nerves. The boy could have easily fought back, but that would only go against what he was trying to accomplish. Sadly, a month after his birth, he had started believing all the spiteful things his sister threw at him and his heart grew dark. He took on the role of the villain like fate had wanted it, and would often get into fights or commit crimes using his ability, much to Ishizu's dismay. When she learned of Darkwing High, a school for special people like Marik, she didn't hesitate to send him away. Now that he had invaded her personal bubble again, aka Silverwing High, Marik had no doubts in his mind that his sister had something planned for him…

"Now, now, please calm your nerves, I hate seeing you this way." Ishizu spoke without flinching a muscle. "You hate seeing me in general." Her brother retorted crossing his arms and leaning against the desk behind him, before raising a brow. "Now what's all this about?" Another sigh. "Yami, I'm sending you back to Darkwing High." The answer came like a knife in the chest. "You… You can't be serious…" The male Egyptian whispered in disbelief. He was expecting perhaps a punishment or maybe to be forced into voluntary work to stay out of her hair, but sending him away again? That's just cruel… "But I like it here!" Marik objected, but his sister silenced him with her hand. "You'll be much happier back at Darkwing High, believe me, people here will only judge you." "The only person here that judges me is _you,_ sister!" Marik slammed his hands on the woman's desk making her jump in fright, but she quickly regain her composure and approached her face so close to the boy's she could feel his breathing. "You are _not_ my brother." She articulated each word slowly and menacingly as though if he were to ever say it again, she would cut him into a million tiny pieces. However, the boy didn't fear his sister's threats, he never did. "I _am_ your brother!" He spat back. "When will you get that through your thick head?!" They stood there glaring at each other for what seemed like a full minute before Marik had enough and started walking towards the door. He stopped and looked back at his sister, "I'm not going anywhere." His voice was low and threatening, but his sister didn't flinch. She never took her eyes off him even after hearing the door knock. "Come in!" she said and without a second's wait a pale boy rushed into the room and hadn't noticed the strong body standing firmly before him in time. He tried to halt, but lost his footing and fell backwards on the floor, resulting with a loud 'thump'. Marik was surprised when he turned to find the smaller boy on the floor, though he quickly lifted himself up and looked down embarrassingly. "I-I'm sorry!" Bakura stammered before bowing in apology. "I didn't realize you were busy! I-I'll just come back!" "Wait!" The male Egyptian grabbed his classmate's wrist, but his head started pounding again. His body became numb and he leaned on Ishizu's desk for support before his vision blurred until he could no longer see. There it was again… That feeling of being trapped inside somebody else's body and forced to watch and listen as the events unfolded themselves…

* * *

 _"_ _Wait!" A nasally voice shouted as the owner grabbed a white-haired boy's wrist. "Don't go…" "Why the bloody hell not!" The evil-looking Bakura spat back. "What has being with you these past few weeks done for me?!" "Done for you?! Bakura you can't mean that!" As to prove the Egyptian wrong, Bakura pulled his arm away and made his way to the door. Before turning the knob, he shot Marik one last glance, sending chills down his spine. "Our partnership is over Marik. I'm done with you!" "I-I'll kill myself then!" Marik threatened but that only made the pale boy snicker. "Oh please! We both know you're too much of a coward to ever hurt that pretty little head of yours!" Bakura slammed the door behind him and Marik couldn't hold back his tears any longer. His feet slowly dragged him to a dark lit room with cool tiles tickling his skin as he walked. He switched on the light and stared sadly at his reflection in the bathroom's mirror. The man staring at himself was indeed him, Marik, but he was slightly different; his hair was lean and didn't stand up in the air like his did. He wasn't as muscled as he was either, but he was still a beautiful sight. Could this Marik be his hikari? That would explain why Marik couldn't remember these conversations with the darker Bakura… Marik didn't stare at himself too long, he reached for the knife lying on the shelf, no doubt Bakura's, and brought it close to his wrist. He hovered the weapon over his flesh, threatening to bring it down at any moment, but paused each time the weapon got too close. Marik bit his lip and set the blade aside. "Damn it Marik!" the Egyptian screamed to himself, "You_ are _a coward! Bakura was right! He's always right… Damn you… why can't I do anything without you…" The blond slid against the floor and pulled his legs close to his chest, where he sobbed for hours without end._

* * *

Marik brought his hand to his chest which was rapidly moving up and down. This time, his vision was different… not only did he have no control over what he did, said and heard, but he also felt everything his other self felt… his hikari… However, Marik couldn't understand what his relationship with Bakura was. The man said they were partners… partners in crime from the way it sounded… They had obviously spent a lot of time together which could explain why his hikari was so sad… but still, something just didn't add up. The Egyptian tried to process this knew information, but was awaken from his train of thought when a soft voice called out his name. "Marik, are you alright?!" It was Bakura's voice… Marik still found it hard to believe that the innocent looking boy before him could be the same one from his memory, because yes, Marik had concluded that his visions were none other than his hikari's memories returning to him. Of course he expected such a reaction from the shorter boy, one second he's fine and the next he looks like he's having a panic attack. Ishizu on the other hand, seemed rather annoyed by her 'brother's' exaggeration. "Would you quit fooling around? Bakura, maybe it would be best if you came back later, I'm afraid this _child_ and I still have some things we need to discuss." The pale boy found it strange how the usually kind teacher suddenly talked down to one of her students, but complied nonetheless. He left with worries in mind for his new friend not knowing that the Egyptian had once again tried to reach for his arm, but was held back by his sister and was still breathing too heavily to make out any words.

The pale boy slowly walked down the hallway, disappointed he had to turn his back on Marik who was clearly in need of help. However, Ms. Ishtar didn't seem too concerned about the situation and she was a teacher after all, she probably knew what she was doing… He had almost forgotten why he had gone to that classroom in the first place until a shiny object caught his eye. No more than five feet away was Rex, leaning against the janitor's closet door dangling a golden locket from one finger. "You know Snowflake," the dino-freak purred, "you really outta keep a closer eye on your valuables." Suddenly, Bakura was struck with realisation, "You stole it?! Give it back _now_!" Bakura was furious, but with his baby face and fluffy white hair he only managed to look cute, which made the shorter male laugh hysterically. "Oh all right!" he teased swinging the locket around until he grabbed it whole in his fist. "But you'll have to come and get it from me…" This kid was a little demon amongst demons, his sharpened teeth were proof of that… no doubt was he leading the pale boy into a trap, but Bakura was too set on getting his necklace back that he was being careless. He took a step towards the dinosaur lover, but the younger boy immediately hid inside the janitor's closet. Bakura quickly followed, but ran into the dark room unable to see where he was going. He jumped at the sound of the door shutting behind him, followed by a 'click', and turned around to be blinded by the sudden flashes of dim light. "Now then," Rex said showing Bakura the locket before shoving it into his coat's pocket, "if you be good boy, I'll give this back to you. Do you understand?" "I'm afraid I don't…" Rex looked shocked, hadn't his intentions been clear enough? Maybe the boy just didn't want to hear it out loud. "I'm going to fuck you and if you give me any trouble I'm going to keep your jewelry!" Bakura covered his mouth with both hands and took a step back, "Y-you can't!" "Watch me."

Rex used his ability to grow a second pair of sharp bones out of his arms and pointed them in the pale boy's direction. "Walk." He instructed Bakura. The room was nothing but a long dark and narrow hallway. They walked until they were met with a second door leading into the real janitor's closet filled with cleaning tools. "Open it." He ordered again. Bakura had been walking backwards up to that point, but now that he had to turn around to open the door, he feared the other would try something suggestive in the moment, and unfortunately, he was right. As soon as he pushed opened the wooden door, Rex shoved him inside the dim lit room and held him against the wall where he placed his extra boned arm next to his neck. "Don't you find this place just perfect Snowflake? We're isolated enough so that no one will hear your screams when I fill you with pleasure…" Rex began sliding his free hand up Bakura's shirt, but the boy tried to wriggle free from his grasp as chills coursed throughout his body. "NO DON'T!" the pale boy yelled at the top of his lungs for which he received a hard slap on the ass. "Quiet! I haven't even done anything to you yet! You're spoiling my fun!" "I-I'll keep screaming so you might as well let me go!" "Tsk!" Rex was not pleased, he knew the boy would resist him, but he hadn't expected it to be so god damn annoying! "I guess I'll just have to teach you a lesson on how to behave then…" With that said, Rex threw Bakura on the floor and walked over him to lock the door. Bakura took this opportunity to get to his feet and take a fighting stance. He hated fighting, but he hated the idea of getting raped even more. Although Bakura was probably stronger than the little monster, Rex had the advantage with his ability to shield himself with his bone-weapons.

When the dinosaur lover saw this he jerked his head back and laughed, which only managed to piss off Bakura who kicked him in his side sending him crashing to the floor. "You should never let your guard down." The pale boy said with a smirk, remembering Marik's advice. It was Rex's turn to be pissed, he quickly got back on his feet and unleashed the true power of his ability. Soon, his arms and legs were covered with extra pairs of bones sticking out of the skin, ripping through his clothes as they emerged. Bakura's body froze in terror all the while shaking uncontrollably, a sight which Rex reveled. His prey was desperately looking for a way out, but the long haired brunet wouldn't give him the time to think. He charged at the pale boy, throwing his extra-boned members at him rapidly, but Bakura was able to block most of his hits, but bruising himself in the process. Finally, Rex maneuvered himself around the pale boy and flipped him over his shoulder, knocking the wind out of his lungs as he hit the ground. The shorter boy then retracted his exposed bones until he was left with his original two on his arms and sat on Bakura's chest whilst his knees pinned his arms alongside his head. "That's more like it!" Rex said teasingly as he licked the side of Bakura's face, careful not to cut himself on his sharp teeth, but the boy turned away with a whimper. "No!" he said still trying to catch his breath, only angering the other more. "Don't look away!" Rex shouted as he stabbed the space between Bakura's nose and his left arm, cutting his flesh ever so slightly to which he earned a satisfying yell from his victim. He clenched his cold fingers around the white haired boy's chin and brought it back to meet his eyes. "Why are you resisting me Snowflake?! Aren't you gay?" Bakura felt himself turn red, "W-what? N-no…" "Ha! Thought so!" Rex grinned with triumph as he began unzipping his pants. "Next you're going to suck me!" "NO!" Bakura closed his eyes shut and looked away despite the other's threat, preparing for the worse…

He was expecting another beating, but it luckily never came. Almost as soon as he refused Rex, the closet door flung open with a tall dark figure standing in its threshold. "He said no!" the low angry voice spoke as the owner approached the long haired brunet and yanked him off his friend. Bakura was overjoyed by the Egyptian's presence as he rid him of the dinosaur loving monster sitting on top of him, first by kicking him in the gut and then grabbing him by the collar while punching him in the stomach repeatedly with his other hand. Rex tried to hit back, but the Egyptian swiftly dodged his blows and spun on his heels before throwing him into the narrow hallway. "Run!" he growled and the short brunet didn't waste another second to escape. "This isn't over!" Rex shouted back once he had reached the first door and then disappeared. Marik put his attention back on Bakura who laid sobbing quietly looking away. "Bakura are you ok?" He asked in his sweetest tone possible, but as he approached his friend, the shy boy looked away and covered his face with his hand. "Don't look at me! I'm so embarrassed!" "Why?" _Why?!_ Wasn't it obvious?! Marik no doubt heard Rex revealing he was gay, something he was desperately trying to keep secret. He was always mocked about it at his old school so upon starting fresh at Silverwing High, he had kept that little detail to himself. Not only that, but he appeared weak and crying in front of Marik! How humiliating!

"I don't know what Rex said to you back there, but you don't have to worry about him anymore. He didn't do anything to you, did he?" Bakura's eyes lit up with hope, maybe Marik didn't hear Rex after all! He shook his head and Marik sighed with relief. The Egyptian reached inside his pocket and handed Bakura a small golden object. "This belongs to you doesn't it?" He showed him the locket and Bakura's eyes lit up. "How did you…?" "Let's just say I know Rex's tastes, and jewelry isn't one of them." He opened the necklace in a V shape and tied it behind the pale boy's neck and then readjusted his hair over the chain. Bakura couldn't deny it any longer, he was crushing hard on the hot Egyptian! "T-thank you!" he stammered while holding the locket tightly, "How did you know I was here?" Marik paused, he didn't want the boy to be embarrassed more than he already was, "Well, I heard you and Rex fighting… You weren't exactly quiet…" "Oh!" Bakura knew what he meant, Marik heard _him_ scream. It was still nice of him to make it sound less awful though, but it hardly mattered. He couldn't wait to tell Yugi he got his locket back… but then, a horrible thought crossed his mind. "Marik, you don't think his friend with the blue hair could be trying to hurt Yugi right now, do you?" "Weevil? I don't know, but I'll ask Atem to keep an eye out for him." The Egyptian pulled out his phone and Bakura watched him admirably as he texted his friend. He couldn't believe how nice Marik was! When he put his phone away the Egyptian stood up and then helped up his friend, but because of the terrible lighting in the room, he hadn't noticed the blood dripping down the pale boy's arm until now. "Bakura are you alright?!" Marik asked once again with worry evident in his eyes. This, for some reason, made Bakura dizzy and lose his balance as his vision blurred and his mind was transported inside somebody else's body.

* * *

 _"_ _Bakura are you alright?!" the pale boy looked up at whom he recognized to be Marik, only his voice was more nasally, his hair fell softly on his shoulders and he wasn't as muscled… still he was handsome. "I'm just fine Marik, thank you!" Bakura's voice was gruff and annoyed, how strange… He didn't feel like himself, like he was looking through somebody else's eyes, unable to speak what was truly on his mind. "How many times do I have to remind you, never let your guard down?!" Marik said letting go of his friend and placing his hands on his hips. "Just one more time." Bakura grinned holding his wounded arm. A sudden moan of pain brought the two's attention on one of the beaten teenagers rubbing his stomach on the ground. Wait… how did he and Marik end up in the street? Weren't they in a closet just a second ago...? "Heh! Looks like someone still has a little fight left in them!" Marik snickered as he approached the hurt boy, but Bakura lifted his arm across his chest to block his way. "No, allow me. This little brat cut me, it's only fair that I return the favor!" With an evil grin, he kicked the pocketknife out of the hand of the brat who stole it from him, despite the agonising pain pulling at his arm. In a swift movement, he grabbed the small knife and stabbed it repeatedly in the teenager's chest and stomach, blood spurting from the flesh wounds and landing in his face and wild white hair._

* * *

Bakura was dizzy, he had no idea what he had just witnessed, but whatever it was, it scared him… a lot! When he came to, he realised he was holding on to Marik's shirt, and the Egyptian's arms were wrapped around his small frame for extra support. "Bakura! Answer me!" The small boy's cheeks were pink as he gently pushed the other away after meeting his eyes. "I-I'm sorry. I-I'm fine, really…" "You don't look fine. What happened?" "I… I saw something… kind of like a vision…" The pale boy didn't know why he was confiding with the Egyptian, the guy hardly knew him and would probably think of him as a freak… but he was surprised to find Marik was nodding. "I understand," he said, "I've had it twice today... Bakura… Hum… Is it alright if I ask you what your consequence is?" The white haired boy was shocked from both the statement and his question. He knew it was forbidden to reveal one's consequence, unless it was physically visible like Rex's sharp teeth, but for his crush to ask him something so personal made him feel somewhat special… how could he say no? "Well," he started nervously looking at his feet, "as a consequence I… I got a double personality… but you don't have to worry, the other me is gone! Nurse Cecelia took care of him!" It made perfect sense now to the Egyptian, he was about to confess his consequence as well, it only seemed fair, but the smaller boy continued to speak, "I think I just remembered one of the other me's memory! He kept me sealed away for two months before I was freed, you know?" Bakura's voice was shaky and he couldn't hold back a tear, filling Marik with immeasurable empathy for the boy. Nonetheless, Bakura continued, "It's just… in my memory, you were there… but you were different… I-I guess what I'm asking is… did you also get a split-personality as a consequence?" Marik wanted to confess the truth that _he_ was a Yami, but after seeing how terrified Bakura was of his, he thought it best to leave out that detail. "For a while… yes there was another me… and he's dead now too…"

Bakura thought it unbelievable that he shared the same consequence with his crush, a reason more to like the guy! He smiled weakly before grabbing his arm in pain. "M-my arm's numb!" he said falling to his knees. Marik immediately acted on his instincts and removed his shirt, wrapping it tightly around his friend's wound in hopes of stopping the blood loss. Bakura turned bright red as he stared at the Egyptian's exposed muscles with blood now making its way down his nose, but quickly wiped it off with his right arm. Luckily Marik didn't seem to notice. "Do you know where the infirmary is?" The pale boy nodded and the Egyptian put one arm around the other's waist and put Bakura's right arm over his shoulder before leading them out. The pale boy tried not to cling to the Egyptian's body, but he was feeling so tired that he ended up resting his head on the other's shoulder. Had he looked up, Bakura would have noticed the small blush appearing on Marik's cheeks as well.

* * *

 **Damn Ishizu, you're so mean to your brother! And poor Bakura, almost getting raped like that, uncool Rex! But hey, Marik to the rescue! XD Will he ever tell Bakura the truth? You'll just have to wait and see! (Mwahahaha)**

 **I'd also like to mention that the memories they'll see (yes there will be more!) do not follow in order the events of the past. So you're getting glimpses from here and there and it'll be up to you to piece them together! (Aren't I mean?)**

 **As always, please comment/review, that would be nice! :)**


	7. Battle on the rooftop

**Hahaha! Wait until you get to the end! I was so tempted to call this chapter "The fall"! XD You'll see why at the end...**

 **For puzzleshipping fans, thank Tori's Yami no Game because she's the reason I went with puzzleshipping instead of peachshipping. ;)**

 **Chapter 7: Battle on the rooftop**

* * *

Once Yugi had changed out of his gym clothes, he made his way to the principal's office where the lost and found box was kept. Oddly enough, he was greeted by the Principal Pegasus since the secretary was gone on her lunch break. "Yugi-boy!" he beamed, "What an unexpected surprise! What can I do for you today?" The man placed his hands on the small boy's shoulders making him feel slightly uncomfortable. Pegasus always was a very touchy person… "I'd like to see the lost and found please." Yugi said trying to keep his voice steady. "Why of course! Why didn't you just say so?" the principal said bringing his hands together and bending over so he was leveled with Yugi, making the small boy even more uncomfortable. Luckily the awkward closeness didn't last long, Pegasus left the room and returned shortly after with a big yellow storage bin full of dirty old clothes. "Is there any chance someone might have come here earlier today to drop off a locket?" Yugi asked praying he wouldn't have to search through the pile of filth, slightly pinching his nose to cover the stench of rotten garlic. "Sorry Yugi, the secretary is the one who usually deals with these things, I don't know if anyone came here today or not." Yugi sighed. He brought out his courage and disgustedly search through the dirty clothes repeating over and over again in his head: "You're doing this for Bakura, you're doing this for Bakura, you're doing this for Bakura…" His eyes watered as the stench invaded his senses, he pulled away after a minute, not being able to stand the itchy feeling anymore. "I guess it's not here." He said rubbing his eyes with both hands. "That's a shame." The principal pouted, folding his arms. "I do hope you find what you're looking for." "T-thank you." The spiky-haired boy murmured as he left the room, still rubbing his eyes.

"Maybe Bakura has more luck finding it than me." Yugi thought as he walked up the main staircase leading to the second floor where their History class was held. The classroom was still far away, so he walked briskly through the crowd of students, but was knocked over by one of them. He looked up at the short boy with blue hair and yellow bug-shaped glasses snickering at him. "Watch where you're going short stack!" Weevil chuckled as he left through the emergency exit, probably to avoid the mass of people in the main staircase. Yugi dusted himself off angrily and clenched his fists together. He was tired of being bullied and if this new kid wanted to be welcomed here, he was going to have to learn some manners! He chased after the blue haired boy up the stairs leading to the roof and upon opening the door, he was hit by a gust of wind forcing him to cover his face with his arm. Through one semi-shut eye he could see Weevil standing next to the wired fence that surrounded the entire edge of the roof, his hands behind his back as he admired the view of the island. "What's your name?" Yugi cried over the wind as he took a step closer. "I do believe it was I who was asking that question this morning until the dumb blond tried to interfere." "Take that back!" Yugi cried again, louder this time. Nobody was going to insult his friend! "You're avoiding the question brat, but if you must know, my name is Weevil. Weevil Underwood that is!" This time the blue haired boy turned to face Yugi and the boy couldn't help but shiver under the other's cold stare. "M-my name is Yugi." He finally answered. "I'd like to talk to you about the rules here." Weevil huffed and crossed his arms, "What about them?" "Well for one thing, please don't pick on people. This is a place where we can all be happy and-" "Precisely Yugi. Picking on people _is_ what makes me happy. I especially like to push around little boys such as yourself!" "I am not a little boy! I'm even older than you last I checked!" Yugi retorted while throwing his fist around. "Ooh! I'm shaking in my boots!" Weevil teased, "Well come on then big boy, show me what you got!"

The spiky haired boy growled as he tightened his clenched fists, this kid was asking for it! Yugi usually avoided fights since he always was beaten up, but since his victory against the giant Ushio, he felt like he could do anything, and defeating this little pipsqueak surely wouldn't prove as difficult… right? He took a fighting stance before launching himself at the other and punching him square in the jaw. Weevil spat out blood before returning the punch in Yugi's ribs to which the boy bent in half. Weevil then proceeded to kicking him, making him roll over twice and was about to kick him again, but was tripped by the other who then quickly moved above him. Yugi punched the boy with glasses several times in the face before receiving a blow in the privates to which he curled up into a ball and removed himself to catch his breath. Both had gotten back on their feet when Weevil charged at Yugi once again, the spiky haired boy easily avoided his punches and spun on his heels to kick the other in the back, sending him flying a few feet away. Weevil lifted himself up slowly, wiping away the blood trailing down his mouth with his sleeve. "You insignificant little insect!" He spat, "I'm going to beat you so hard your own mother won't even recognise you when I'm done!" With that said, the blue haired boy burst into a fit of laughter as his body slowly morphed into that of a human size spider. A chill coursed through Yugi's body for each snapping and cracking of the other's bones as they reshaped themselves into the hairy black monster. The boy's glasses broke as they hit the ground and his clothes were ripped apart, except for his green coat which clung to his upper-body. Yugi was paralysed with fear as the giant arachnid slowly crept closer… and closer… and closer…

* * *

Atem's ability allowed him to run at an incredible speed, which was why he was able to return to his dorm in seconds, whereas it would have taken anybody else a twenty minute walk. He decided he would shower at his place rather than use the public stalls at the school. Honestly could you imagine the amount of dirty people who showered there?! Disgusting. That gym class sure was a workout, but it wasn't the only thing making the Egyptian sweat… Ever since meeting Yugi that morning, Atem would get incredibly nervous around the boy. He couldn't understand why, but he reminded him of his old self, the Atem who used to be carefree and happy all the time. Yet, despite his consequence, Yugi still found it in himself to smile… Atem envied that. Fortunately, he befriended his smaller look-alike and now felt a lost part of himself return. The Egyptian slowly dried his hair with a towel before gelling it up in its usual star shape, all the while whistling to a Bryan Adams song. Suddenly, he was startle by a loud buzzing, Marik had just sent him a text: "Atem, Bakura is worried Weevil might attack his friend Yugi. Could you check up on him?"

Atem was filled with worry at the mention of Yugi being in danger, he quickly threw on a pair of pants and a jacket and dashed out his room. Once inside the school, he ran across the halls searching for his little friend, not minding that he was exposing his ability to the wondering students. "Where could he be?" Atem thought as he bit his lip. "Could he already be at the cafeteria?" Unfortunately, Yugi wasn't there either. The Egyptian searched the outdoor garden next and just when he was about to go search the entire dormitories, he heard the rustling of a metallic object above him. A small boy seemed to be backed up against the wired fence surrounding the edge of the roof, and Atem could just barely make out Yugi's silhouette. "Yugi!" he cried out to his friend, but the wind currents were too strong. A person standing a meter away would've had trouble hearing the Egyptian. Not wasting another second, Atem ran back inside the building and made his way up the emergency staircase leading to the roof. He pushed open the door and found the giant arachnid creeping up on his friend who stood paralyzed against the fence. Weevil jumped in the air and was about to come down on Yugi with his sharp limbs, but only managed to tear off a piece of black clothing. Atem grunted in pain from the now bleeding wound in his back, fortunately, he had moved just in time to push the small boy out of the way and received the injury instead. Yugi had to blink twice before he could comprehend what had just happened. Atem had wrapped his arms around him and dove them out of the way just in time it seemed.

Weevil was about to bring down his hairy leg on the two when Yugi quickly snapped out of his torpor and rolled the two over, avoiding turning them into shish-kebabs. The black monster brought its limb down again repeatedly, but Atem managed to dodge each strike with Yugi in his arms. "Come on, you're going to have to do better than that!" The Egyptian spat mockingly, unfortunately angering the beast boy. Weevil let out a piercing screech and neither boys could refrain from covering their ears with hands. The arachnid then charged towards its preys, still screeching to keep them in place, but never hit its target and ran head first against the brick wall. Atem looked confused as he searched his friend's eyes for answers. "Yugi, what happened? We should have been crushed back there…" "I used my ability," Yugi explained as he took a step back to get a better look at the Egyptian, "I can make myself and anything I touch immaterial for a few seconds, so Weevil ended up running right through us." There was amazement in Atem's eyes which brought a blush up on Yugi's cheeks. "Thank you." The Egyptian whispered before walking over to the blue haired boy. Weevil had morphed back into his human form with his green jacket being the only thing covering his now naked body. He looked up at Atem whom he could tell was really pissed. "L-look, this is all just a misunder-" Weevil stuttered nervously before his throat was crushed under the Egyptian's foot. "What's that? I can't hear you down there." Atem said sarcastically, showing no sign of calming down. "Didn't I tell you this very morning to behave? Why do you insist on causing me trouble?!" He applied even more pressure, leaving the boy barely able to utter an 'I'm sorry'. "Speak up son, I can't hear you!" Atem shouted as he pressed down even harder on the other's throat, preventing him from breathing.

Weevil was desperately trying to remove the Egyptian's foot but to no avail. He thought his end was near, that is, until the spiky haired boy was dragged away by his smaller look-alike. "Yugi, what do you think you're doing?!" Atem exclaimed completely caught off guard. "Please don't kill him!" The smaller teen blurted out in tears. "I know he tried to kill us, but we're not like him! We can't stoop to his level! Please…" His eyes were so pleading and so innocent that Atem looked away regretfully. "You're right, I won't kill him." With that, Yugi slightly released his hold on the other's waist, enough for him to break free and walk back over to the boy lying on the floor. He pointed his finger accusingly in his direction and warned, "If you ever come near me or any of my friends again, I swear I won't be so merciful! Got that?!" Weevil nodded his head vigorously, unable to make out any sound from his bruised vocal chords. Atem wasn't sure he believed the boy, but his terrified expression sufficed for now. He spun on his heels and made his way down the staircase followed by Yugi.

"Wait!" The smaller of the two cried out. Atem stopped midway down the stairs and looked over his shoulder. "What?" His tone was cold and his eyes were narrowed, he was visibly still angry and even though his rage wasn't directed at Yugi, it still made the smaller boy rethink his next words. "I just… wanted to apologise." The Egyptian's anger quickly faded to confusion. "For what?" He asked incredulous and Yugi slowly walked down next to Atem with his head down. "Well… if it wasn't for me, you wouldn't have had to come to my rescue and get hurt…" "Yugi, under no circumstance believe that this is your fault, alright? Weevil has had it out for me ever since we both started out at Darkwing High and he'll do anything to get back at me, including attacking my friends." "Why? What happened between you two?" "That's… a story for another time." Yugi simply nodded, he knew his friend had already told him more than he wanted to and he didn't want to pry. They had both begun to walk down the stairs again when Yugi offered, "Can I at least go with you to the infirmary?" "The infirmary?" Atem was once again caught by surprise. He wasn't aware this school even had one of those and even if had known, he wouldn't go anyway. But looking into Yugi's pleading eyes, he didn't have the courage to turn him down, in fact, they were so hypnotising that Atem wasn't paying attention to the steps anymore and tripped over one of them. The smaller boy tried to hold him back, but was only pulled into the fall with him. Luckily, they were near the foot of the staircase, which meant Atem fell directly onto the floor with Yugi on top of him. The Egyptian winced from the extra pressure added to his back wound, but tried not to let it show. "Are you alright?" He asked his friend and the boy lifted his head off his chest, "Y-yes I'm fine." Yugi tried to lift himself up by placing his hands on the floor for support, but quickly realised he misplaced one of them when he didn't feel the coldness of the floor, but rather something soft and round... He knew what he had done when he heard the other's sharp gasp. Yugi's face turned bright red as he basically jumped in the air and off his friend from embarrassment. "A-Atem! I-I'm so s-sorry! I-I didn't mean t-to!" "D-don't worry Yugi, i-it was an accident." Atem said even more flustered than his friend after sitting up and pulling his legs back, hands tightly gripped around his now bruised member. "I-it was my fault for tripping in the first place, b-but now I think you might actually have to help me to the infirmary." Yugi nodded and slowly helped his friend up whilst avoiding his gaze, too embarrassed to look him in the eyes.

* * *

 **(Excuse me, I'm dying of laughter!) Oh Yugi! HAHAHAHAHA! Keep your hands to yourself buddy! XD Can you say #Awkward!**

 **And now you know Atem's ability! (That's how he was able to save Yugi from Weevil back in chapter two! ;)**

 **Let me know what you think! About Yugi, the ending, anything! And about the title, which is better? "Battle on the rooftop" or "The fall"? (HAHAHA!)**


	8. Cafeteria

**I'm baaaaaaack! XD I really didn't know what to name this chapter because it's all over the place, so I just went with this:**

 **Chapter 8: Cafeteria**

* * *

Two teenagers, arms wrapped around each other, slowly made their way to the school's infirmary. The smaller of the two was fighting the urge to succumb to the unconscious as his blood continued to drip off his arm, leaving a trail of red splatters behind him. "We're almost there Bakura, just hang on a little longer." Marik comforted, but the injured boy was barely holding on and had let the Egyptian support most of his weight across the lengthy halls. "Next… right…" The white haired boy instructed weakly. Marik picked up the pace with Bakura's feet now dragging on the floor as he made his way to the infirmary room. It was easy to find, needing only to spot the red cross lit above the door. Luckily it had been left open by the previous injured couple and Marik was surprised to find a shirtless boy with a familiar hair style standing in the back of the room. "Atem?" Marik called and the boy flinched before returning his quizzical look. Marik wasn't wearing a shirt and he was holding a pale boy bleeding heavily in the threshold. "Don't move." Cecelia scolded as she pressed her palms harder against the Egyptian's injury, hands glowing green as she swept them over the wound. She hadn't taken her eyes off her patient and only noticed the bleeding boy when Yugi exclaimed his concern for his friend. "Bakura! What happened?!" he asked leaping across the room, but the pale boy was too exhausted to answer.

Yugi had all his strength back since Atem refused to be treated before his smaller companion. The blond lady grimaced at the sight of Bakura and pressed on harder on the Egyptian's back to speed up the healing process, she knew that leaving in the middle of a healing procedure would only worsen the patient's case. "Set him on the bed!" She shouted over to the trio who obeyed instantly. Cecelia finished a few seconds later and shoved past Atem, knocking him over as she rushed to Bakura's side. "This is going to sting a little." She told him. Not wasting another second, she gripped onto the bleeding wound, rubbing the deep gash with her glowing green hands. The pale boy instinctively screamed at the top of his lung and squeezed Marik's hand that was conveniently close by.

The procedure drew to an end several minutes later. Bakura lessened his grip on the Egyptian's hand and his screams were dulled down to small whines. "How does it feel?" Cecelia said gently after removing her hands so that Bakura could move his arm around slowly. "I-it's a little sore, but I should be fine. Thank you." His smile soon disappeared and his face turned bright red when Marik gently pulled his hand away. _Bollocks!_ The boy didn't realise he had grabbed it while he was in pain and was deeply embarrassed about it, although Marik was smiling at him which slightly cheered him up. "Oh dear Bakura, you've gone all red! Do you have a fever?" Cecelia brought her hand up to the boy's forehead, but he quickly moved it away. "No, no, I'm fine, honest!" Bakura didn't think he could turn any redder, but there he was, red as a tomato. "You sure?" Marik asked leaning over to also feel the white haired boy's forehead. The blush deepened once more as he stared at the Egyptian's approaching exposed chest. "Your nose is bleeding." Atem pointed out, having made his way next to the others. "Oh bloody hell!" Bakura swore, tired of people fussing over him. The nurse handed him a tissue before making her way to the door and closing it behind her. "Mrs. Cecelia, what are you doing?" Yugi asked confused. "It's not every day I get a bunch of students injured the way you all were. I'm going to have to report this to the principal obviously, but why don't you tell me what happened first. It'll save us all a lot of trouble."

The four boys all stared at each other, wondering what to say and who to say it. In the end, it was Atem who spoke up. "Weevil was the one who attacked Yugi, I can only assume Rex was the one who attacked you, Bakura?" The pale boy nodded. His aggressor had never told him his name, but he remembered Marik calling him 'Rex' a couple of times. "I see," Cecelia continued, "if your story checks out, which I've no doubt it will, those two might be transferred back to Darkwing High, but then again, that's just my opinion." Another silence. "Is… Is there any way they could still participate in the tournament tomorrow?" Everyone turned to face Marik, confusion clear in their wide eyes. "It's just, I want a fair shot at beating those twerps!" He explained and Atem nodded in agreement. "That's true, I too wouldn't mind kicking their ass in a fair duel." Cecelia seemed to be contemplating their request. "I'll mention it to the principal," she said, "but _he'll_ has the final say." "Thank you." Marik and Atem said in unison.

Bakura leaned down to pick up Marik's shirt that had been thrown away by the nurse and handed it back to him. "Sorry, I didn't mean for your shirt to get all bloody…" "Don't worry about it." He smiled as he took the black tank top from the pale fingers. He was about to slide it over his head when Bakura stopped him. "What are you doing?! It's covered in my blood!" "Well then I guess I have no choice but to walk around shirtless for the rest – of – the – day!" He smirked and winked at the pale boy, who didn't stay that way very long mind you, quickly returning to his usual red shade from embarrassment. "I'm pretty sure there's a rule against that…" Yugi added in nervously, but Marik turned around and winked at him too, making the small boy blush a light shade of pink. "Oh please, I've never been one to follow the rules, right Atem?" "Hey don't bring me into this!" "Boys that's enough!" Cecelia cut in, crossing her arms. "None of you are leaving here looking like that!" The four teenagers looked at each other wondering what exactly the nurse had in store for them…

Joey and Mai had been sitting in the garden a while, chatting about little things like movies and pastimes. That's when Mai confessed she used to be a great singer and being the hyperactive teenager that he was, Joey insisted on hearing her sing. Mai looked away and held back the tears forming in the corner of her eyes. "What's wrong Mai? Did I say something wrong?" "No Joey, it's just… I… can't sing anymore…" "I'm sorry to hear that Mai… Truly I am… You don't have to tell me anything, but if you ever do want to talk about it, I'll listen." "Thank you Joey." She said, but her voice was barely audible over the sound of the harsh wind blowing over them. "Man, where is this wind coming from?!" Joey shouted so that the blond girl could hear him, "Let's go inside!" Mai nodded and the couple dashed for the building. "What do we do now?" she asked once inside, combing her hair with her fingers. "Well, it'll be lunch soon, why don't we wait in the cafeteria. I could introduce you to my friends!" "Are you sure that's alright? I don't want to be a bother." "You? A bother? Never! Don't worry about it, they're really swell guys!" Mai wasn't convinced, but she appreciated Joey's efforts and decided to give it a shot.

The two waited patiently for Joey's friends to arrive. They had already been waiting ten minutes, and another twenty after the bell rang. "That's weird, they don't usually take this long to get here." Joey said checking his cellphone for any missed calls or texts, but there weren't any. "Maybe they're just out there looking for me, they didn't exactly know I was going to skip class…" "Or maybe they saw me and thought to sit elsewhere…" Mai said looking down at her hands disappointingly. A warm pair of fingers soon trailed over to hers and offered her comfort. "Nobody in their right mind would ever do that Mai I promise! Besides, Yug _just_ texted me saying he's on his way." The blond girl smiled at this and turned around in surprise when a familiar voice called out to her. "Mai! Joey! I didn't know you two knew each other!" Tea beamed as she approached the couple with her lunch tray in hands. "Ya! Mai and I had gym class together this morning!" Joey said giving her a thumbs up, but Mai went back to staring at her hands. "Sorry for running off on you this morning Tea, there was something I needed to do…" "Don't sweat it Mai, I'm sure that whatever it was it had to be very important!" "Would you like to sit down with us?" She offered with a glint of hope and the brunette sat down next to her ecstatic. Mai couldn't believe how friendly and forgiving everyone was at Silverwing High… If she had faced the same situation at her old school, not doubt would the person have scolded her! This was a rather pleasant change…

"Hey, do you know if Seto and Mai will be joining us?" Marik asked the smaller Egyptian next to him as they made their way down the hall. "I don't know. I texted Seto, but I haven't heard anything back. He's probably making out with Mai or something." Atem rolled his eyes at the thought. They made a final turn left leading to the wide room known as the cafeteria. "Oh…shit!" "What is it Atem?" Yugi asked from behind him. "See for yourself." He said pointing to the gorgeous blond sitting with another guy in the middle of the room. "Who is she?" Bakura asked looking over Yugi's head. "Mai, Seto's girlfriend." Marik answered. "And boy, will Seto be pissed when he sees this!" Atem added with a smirk. He wouldn't be surprised if the two had already broken up, it would explain a lot of things… He soon found himself and his three friends making their way to that table with a tray of food in hand. Joey was the first to notice, "What da! Have you guys joined a club or something without tellin' me?! Why are you all wearing… _that_! Seriously what the heck!" "Sorry Joey," Yugi said as he sat down next to the blond, "we had to change our clothes at the infirmary." He glanced over at their matching baby-blue colored nurse coats which made them look ridiculous... "The infirmary!" Tea gasped. "Why?!" "Did you get into a fight or something?" Mai asked just as curious. "You know how Rex and Weevil can be, Mai?" Atem stated crossing his arms to match Marik, looking superior as he did so. "But we sure thought them a lesson!" The bigger Egyptian smirked, but was then taken aback by the sudden slamming of hands on the table. "You have got to be kidding me!" Joey raged, "I missed all the action again!" "Please don't worry about it Joey," Yugi tried to comfort his friend by patting his shoulder, "we're alright now! Atem and Marik helped us out." The boy relaxed under his friend's touch and composed himself. "I guess I should be thankin' you guys then huh?" "Don't sweat it, anyone would have done the same thing were they in our shoes." Atem said, genuinely smiling for once.

"Wow! You guys must be really brave to just take anybody on like that!" Tea smiled as she leaned closer to Atem across the table, resting her chin on her fingers. "Oh that's right!" Mai cut in, "I don't think you've been introduced yet! Tea, Joey, this is Atem and Marik." "Nice to meet you both." Atem replied and the other simply nodded. "So then Atem, how do you like it here so far?" The brunette continued, leaning closer ever so slightly across the table. "It's nice, I mean aside from that incident, I don't think I'll hate it here." "So do you guys know if you'll be taking anyone to the dance Friday? I mean it is a good way to get to know someone." Tea continued, asking both Egyptians this time to not seem too clingy to Atem. "I might give it a few days, I wouldn't feel comfortable asking just anybody." "Same." Marik nodded in agreement, although he wouldn't mind getting to know better a certain white haired boy.

Tea clapped her hands cheerfully and Joey knew she could babble for hours, so he preferred changing the subject. "Hey Tea, where's Serenity? I thought she was with you." The blond raised a good point, the two were inseparable most of the time. "Oh! She told me she had to go study with someone today, but if you ask me, I think it's a date! I mean they're studying under the cherry blossom tree behind the cafeteria for crying out loud!" "A date!" Joey gasped horrified, "Ma sista can't be on a date! She's too young! What's the guy's name, I'll clobba him!" "Joey, stop being an overprotective brother for a second." Tea snapped, "She said this guy was really nice. She didn't give me a name, but she said he was handsome and had long black hair. Also he's one of the new guy's from Darkwing High!" "Darkwing High! And long hair?! That's terrible! I have to stop her!" "Joey please calm down, you're overacting." Bakura said with a hint of insult in his tone, "I have long hair and I'm a perfectly trustworthy person." "Yes but Bakura you can pull off the whole long-hair thing…" Joey said softly hoping to redeem himself in his friend's eyes, but was then face with Marik who leaned over the table on his forearm, "What about Darkwing High students? You seemed to be getting along just fine with the three of us!" "I'm sorry I don't mean to insult you guys! I just feel uncomfortable with my sister hanging around with a new student, especially after Yugi and Bakura got hassled by those jerks from dis mornin'. I'm just going to go check up on her, ok? I'll see you guys later."

"Joey wait!" Mai cried out to the boy, but he was already too far gone to hear her over the loud chattering students. The blond sighed and dropped her hand in her palm. "What's wrong Mai?" Atem asked confused, "Mokuba's a good kid, I'm sure Joey won't have a problem with them hanging out together." "That's not it," the purple eyed girl sighed, "you haven't seen Joey and Seto going at each other, honestly! They _despise_ each other! I can only imagine what would happen if their siblings started _dating…_ " "Oh… I see what you mean, this can't end well." Atem copied Mai and sighed, but Tea already had a friendship speech prepared to cheer him up. She scooched down closer to Yugi now that Joey was gone and put her hand over Atem's arm to support him, although he didn't really need any comforting. "Don't worry Atem! Serenity isn't the type to just give up on someone, and if Joey really loves her, he'll let her see Mokuba!" "You guys forget that this is _if_ they are dating!" Yugi said angrily separating the two. He used to hate seeing Tea drool over somebody else, especially since she would often give him signs, but would never make a move. He was still waiting for her, but a blind man could see she was more interested in his taller, stronger Egyptian look-alike. He felt angry, but not for the reason he originally thought. He wasn't so much upset by the fact that Tea was all over Atem, but rather that Atem didn't seem to mind! All these jumbled feelings inside his heart confused the poor soul who wished he had the answers written in front of him instead of waiting for events to unfold themselves to learn who it was he actually liked…

* * *

 **Ok, let me just start off by saying Bakura is so damn cuuuute! I love making him turn red and I laugh everytime I read back the scene where he's blushing over the fact the nurse thought he had a fever! HAHAHAHA**

 **I just love Joey in this Chapter! He's super sweet to Mai, then he's overprotective of Serenity (awe! XD) and then manages to get marik angry with him! Classic Joey!**

 **Hope you guys liked it! I think I'll be posting a new one each day up until Christmas, i have three more written up and another one on the way. Consider it my Christmas gift to you! ;)**

 **Please leave a comment/review! I'd like to know what you think! :D**


	9. Under the cherry blossom tree

**As promised, another chapter! This one is a little short, I always seem to run out of ideas when it comes to siblingshipping :P**

 **WARNING : Contains a LOT of swearing! Personally I never swear, but I really wanted to give Mokuba some character. He's not a sweet innnocent boy in my story, in case you hadn't figured that out. Anyway, hope you guys still enjoy it!**

 **Chapter 9: Under the cheery blossom tree**

* * *

Serenity hadn't been waiting long under the cherry blossom tree when a pair of well-built guys approached her. "Hey there," one said running his hand through his black hair, "you look like you could use some company." The boy sat down next to the brunette and took her hand in his as he approached his lips to her pale knuckles. "Stop that," Serenity said calmly but annoyed as she pulled away, "how many times must I tell you I'm not interested!" "Ya Duke! This lovely lady has been waiting to see _me_ all day!" Tristan yanked the other away by his hair, shoving him on the ground a few feet away before kneeling beside the brunette. "What do you say we ditch rich boy over there and go do something fun?" "No Tristan, I need to study, leave me alone please." She sighed and returned to reading her math book, but the boy was displeased and snatched it away from her. "Homework is stupid." He said holding it out of the girl's reach. "Hey give that back it's mine!" Serenity tried jumping in the air, but was unable to reach the object, which put a grin on the bald boy lips. "Ok then, how about we trade? The book for a kiss." "What?!" Tristan was really starting to get on her nerves, true, she wanted her book back, but there was no way in hell she would ever kiss that jerk! Plus, she couldn't very well take it back by force, after all the boy's ability was having super strength. Duke cut in at this point, "Hey Serenity, if I get you your book back will you give _me_ a kiss?"

"Why don't you both grow a pair of balls!" A third voice called from behind. The harsh wind was cut off by the back of the cafeteria, but a little breeze still managed to skim through the boy's black flowy hair as he stood his ground, arms crossed over his chest, staring intently at the two bigger males. "You're both acting childish," the owner's voice continued, "start behaving like proper men and hand Serenity her book back." "Or else what? You're going to call you're mommy and have her tell on us?" Tristan and Duke burst into a fit of laughter, but soon ached from their collision with the ground. Neither saw it coming, the speed at which Mokuba dashed through them and flipped them over. It hardly seemed realistic, the boy was so small in comparison to them and yet he knocked them both down in a second's time! Tristan moaned and soon realised the hard cover object was gone from his hand and turned a shocking eye in the small boy's direction. The book was held perfectly intact in his left hand! His eyes then locked with the dark orbs staring down at him with daggers. "Listen you little shits," Mokuba spat, his voice as cold as his stare, "I don't know what kind of retarded shit-head told you your lives were so significant that you could go around fucking with people, but let me tell you bastards something, you're not even worth a rich man's penny! If you insist on being assholes with no other talent than being annoying as fuck, then fight me in the ring tomorrow, I'll be waiting."

Tristan and Duke lay stunned on the ground, slowly recovering from the low blow insults that had left them speechless. Tristan wasn't very smart, but understood he was being challenged to a duel. "Fine then," he said gritting his teeth, "we'll have a fair fight, and then we'll see who's a little shit!" He grabbed Duke's arm and dragged him away with him, ignoring the other's loud protests. Mokuba closed his eyes and exhaled. There weren't many things that got him worked up like that, but seeing the two harassing the beautiful girl reminded him of his childhood bullies. He recalled Seto stepping in and protecting him, but who was going to protect Serenity? He was pulled back to reality when a gentle hand was placed on his shoulder and turned him around. "Thank you." The brunette said placing a kiss on the boy's cheek, which shortly after turned a light shade of pink. "F-for what?" He stuttered reverting to his shy self. "Not only did you get me my book back, but you also managed to rid me of those two! Usually I can't get them to leave me alone!" "Really? Well next time they harass you just tell me and I'll make them regret ever bothering you!" Serenity giggled and covered her hand backwards over her mouth, making her look twice as cute! "Awe you're too sweet! But I wouldn't want to get you into trouble." Mokuba stared down at his feet to hide his blushing face under his long black hair, no girl had ever managed that before…

* * *

Seto was having a bad day. No, scratch that, he was having _the worst_ day! He was feeling so awful he could murder the slightest thing that ticked him off. First, he had yet another fight with his girlfriend, secondly, he just made a new enemy… Joey… Wheeler… just thinking about that dumb idiot made Seto's blood boil, which was saying a lot since he was ice cold, literally… Finally, he had wanted to discuss his problems with his friends, but he received a last minute text saying they wanted to sit with some new friends they made. Well shit! Seto was in too bad of a mood to even consider meeting them, so he snuck out behind the building and let the gust of wind caress his tense cheek muscles. He felt himself relax and at ease by the tranquility, though it was short-lived for it was rudely interrupted by the bickering couple walking past him. He recognized them from his gym class and stared at them coldly hoping to scare them into silence, unfortunately getting no such result. The two didn't even acknowledge his presence, let alone his stare. The unhappy teenager wondered what it was that had the two so worked up, so he decided to tune in to their conversation.

"I can't believe that new kid! Who does he think he is, talking down to us like that?" " _I_ can't believe Serenity was drooling over the midget! I mean, has she not seen my gorgeous face?" "I can't help but wonder what that kid has that I don't…" "Hair, and lots of it!" "Oh shut up Duke! Mark my words, by the end of the week, Serenity Wheeler will be mine!" Wheeler… wasn't that the name of a certain blond headed idiot Seto had come to hate? From the way the two were talking, this Serenity girl was with his brother and if by any chance she was related to Joey, he would make sure to end whatever relationship existed between her and his brother. The rich boy threw himself up and marched in the direction the couple had arrived from. He noticed two figures sitting under a cherry blossom tree not too far away, one he clearly recognised as his brother Mokuba. His pace quickened and his posture straightened to appear more intimidating, though it wasn't done intentionally, but rather out of habit. The two 10th graders were laughing about a joke Mokuba made when the shadow of a tall man with crossed arms appeared over them.

"Mokuba, what do you think you're doing?" The question came as a shock to the short boy, Seto never talked to his brother and when he did, it was always Mokuba who started the conversation. "I'm studying." He said confusedly, though this only angered the tall boy even more. "No, you were laughing… with a _Wheeler_! Mokuba, you need to stay away from them!" "What? Why?" The small boy replied defensively rising to his feet, followed by Serenity. "You are not allowed any contact with anyone related to Joey Wheeler! Am I clear?" Seto finished with a low growl and squeezed his brother's arm to get an answer, but the boy stubbornly pulled away. Surprisingly, it was Serenity who came to his defense, despite her fear of the man. "Mokuba can make his own decisions! You can't tell him what to do!" Her voice was shaking, but her eyes were fierce and determined, whereas Seto's were cold and violent, "Shut up bitch!" One hard slap across the cheek and Serenity was down on the ground. Mokuba immediately knelt next to his crush and held her face in his hands, feeling the cold cheek where she had been struck. It didn't look too serious, but it was definitely going to bruise which made the small boy want to curse at his brother's inappropriate behavior, but someone else beat him to it.

"Koiba you asshole! Stay away from ma sista!" Joey spat angrily standing a few feet away from behind the tall man, the steam fully visible around his heated body. "Wheeler." Kaiba muttered as he turned to face the Brooklyn boy, "Go away, this is family business." "Exactly!" Joey grabbed the taller man's collar, "By hurtin' ma sista, you made it ma business!" "Haven't you bothered me enough today?! First, you go after Mai, _my girlfriend_ , and now you want to get between me and my brother?! You selfish egocentric sun of a bitch!" Kaiba shouted imitating Joey and grabbing his collar, releasing cold air under the blond's chin, though he wasn't bothered by it. " _Me? Egocentric? Selfish?_ Do you own a mirror?!" Joey exclaimed dumbfounded by Seto's poor choice of words, "If you haven't noticed, your relationship with Mai is hanging by a thread so thin the only reason it's still hanging is because Mai refuses to give up on ya! But I know she's wasting her time on a douchebag like you!" "What do you know about our relationship huh?! You only met her this morning!" "And I can bet I know her better than you! You think you're so important because of your rich daddy, but have you ever paid attention to Mai? Ask her how she's feeling? You'd be surprised by how much she wishes you two were through so she wouldn't have to cry every time you're done talking to her!" "You're lying! Mai's mine and that's not going to change!" "There you go again, treating her like an object! She's a _person_ , Koiba, not a pet! If you don't love her anymore, you don't have to stay with her!" "Is that what you think I'm doing?!"

Serenity and Mokuba just sat there wide-eyed, listening to their brothers' argument that had somehow shifted over to their love life. "What just happened?" Serenity whispered over to Mokuba. "I don't know, it's like they completely forgot we exist." Suddenly, an idea popped into the brunette's head. She brought her finger up to her lips and shushed the black haired boy before putting her books back into her bag and taking his hand. Mokuba stared in amazement as his crush slowly started to disappear from head to toe, and when her hand vanished, he noticed her ability working its way over to him, turning his hand and then arm invisible before spreading across his entire body. He let himself be guided away from the scene by the beautiful girl and glanced his head over once to see the two boys still bickering. Mokuba was happy sharing this moment with Serenity, but a part of him wished his brother had noticed him…

* * *

 **Again sorry if it was short, but I hope the action made up for it!**

 **This is the last chapter of my First Day Arc, and we'll moving right along to the Tournament Arc in the next chapter! XD**

 **If you enjoyed it or wish to see something happen, please let me know! Comment/Review!**


	10. Tournament

**Welcome to the first chapter of my Tournament Arc! Basically what's going to happen for the next few chapters are duels... ya... I'll try to keep it interesting though and hopefully it won't seem repetitive.**

 **Chapter 10: Tournament**

* * *

A lot had happened since Mokuba and Serenity left their brothers to their petty argument. Seto and Joey spent almost half an hour yelling at each other until the bell rung and they were forced to return to class, having completely forgotten how the argument started in the first place. Luckily, the rest of the day went by smoothly and the two only saw each next morning; the day of the tournament. Staff members worked overnight to rearrange the gymnasium into a combat arena with the bleachers set upwards like in an auditorium, surrounding the stage on three sides. Pegasus had the first two rows on the shortest side of the arena reserved for him, the nursing crew, the participants and invited guests, the rest was used by the students.

As for those taking part in the tournament, they were asked by the gym teacher to come early, though he himself was running late. Mokuba sat on the bleacher, watching from afar his brother and girlfriend argue yet again about God knows what. Bored out of his mind, he rested his head in his hand and closed his eyes to clear his thoughts. Even though he felt sorry for his brother's inevitable upcoming breakup, he was still angry with him for hurting Serenity. The black haired boy sighed, but relaxed under the familiar gentle touch of his crush. "Hi there, can I sit here?" Serenity asked with a cheerful smile, placing a hand on Mokuba's shoulder. Though he didn't answer with words, Serenity understood she was welcomed when he patted the spot next to him. She took her seat and continued in her cheerful tone, "So, are you excited?" "I guess, I just hope I get to fight those jerks from yesterday, but chances are that won't happen. We'll just have to see." "Hum." Serenity tried to look interested, but in all honesty, Tristan and Duke were the last people she wanted to talk about, so she tried changing the subject, "Do you think you'll be able to defeat the others?" She asked a little more seriously, and Mokuba replied with the same gravity, "I actually don't know. They all have a year or two on me, but I think I'll be fine if I focus hard enough." "That's good to kn-" Serenity was suddenly cut off by her brother Joey, who had caught her holding hands with the boy.

"Serenity, what are you doing?" he asked walking up to her with Mai on his heels. "N-nothing!" She said nervously pulling her hands back with a blush on her cheeks. The blond was going to protest when Mai came to the smaller girl's aid. "Leave them alone Joey, I'm sure you wouldn't like it if someone was busting in on one of your private moments!" "W-w-wait a minute!" Mokuba stuttered, his face flushing pink, "You guys have got this all wrong!" Two teenagers cramped from laughing too hard came up from behind and joined in on the conversation. "So," Atem started between chuckles, "seems our little Mokuba is all grown up!" He and Marik had known the younger boy for about a year now, being close friends with Seto, they saw him on numerous occasions. Although, they had never seen him so flustered about a girl before, and he had to admit, it was darn cute! "Shut up." Mokuba moped crossing his arms and slouching back.

* * *

There was no class that day, but students were welcomed to come and watch the tournament. Yugi wasn't surprised when he and Tea walked in and found the seats almost full, after all, who would miss out on a chance to see an actual legal brawl between fellow mutants? "Oh man, I hope we can find a seat. Everything looks taken!" Tea said looking up in the bleachers unable to find available seats. "Perhaps I can help you with that." A calm voice said from behind, catching the two teens by surprise. Ishizu had come out of nowhere as was her habit, nonetheless, she was loved amongst the teachers and was always greeted back by smiles. "Follow me you two." she continued, "Your friends have reserved some seats for you on the side bleachers with Mr. Pegasus." Yugi and Tea's faces lit up with excitement and followed the woman across the room to where Pegasus stood. The man greeted them with a large smile and pulled Yugi into a bear hug. "Oh I'm so happy to see you all!" he cheered, setting the boy down after hearing him squirming for air. "Likewise." The small boy murmured between breathes, though he wasn't being completely honest with the man. "Hey Yug! Tea! Over here!" Joey called over to the two and they didn't waste a second to make it over to their friends and away from the slightly crazed principal. When Yugi was close enough, Joey pulled his best friend into a noogie.

"What took you guys so long?" Joey teased setting the poor boy back down, "Hey, isn't Bakura with you?" "Oh that's right, I guess you guys don't know!" Yugi thought out loud, remembering yesterday's events, "Nurse Cecilia asked him if he could help her out during the tournament. He's probably with her right now." "No he's not," Atem said pointing behind them, "He's right over there." Everyone turned around to where Atem pointed his finger, but none were as quick to do so as Marik. The Egyptian had grown very fond of Bakura in the short period of time they've known each other, and was hoping to see him again before the tournament started. His eyes searched within the crowd but no sign of fluffy white hair... Marik looked disappointingly back at Atem who had his head thrown back with one hand on his stomach and the other pointing at him as he laughed wildly. "You should have seen your face Marik!" He said calming down and wiping a fake tear away from his eye. Marik growled and smacked the back of the smaller Egyptian's head, "Idiot! That wasn't funny!" Atem only laughed harder, "Ha! Ha! I knew you-" Marik smacked him again, harder this time, to prevent him from finishing his sentence. He knew what he was going to say, and sure, he did like Bakura, but not in the way his friend was suggesting… right?

He wanted to smack Atem again, just for making him think of such a thing, but Tea gently got in between them. "Maybe we should keep this playful fighting in the ring, eh?" She said softly, hoping not to aggravate the Egyptian's anger. At that moment, the gym teacher showed up and stood before the crowds who silenced themselves in his intimidating presence. "Alright you little rascals, listen up!" he shouted, looking at the participants, "Your combat suits are here so go and change into them. We're running late on schedule so hurry up!" Mokuba rolled his eyes, obviously, the reason they were running behind was because _the teacher_ was late, but he'd never dare say that to his face! Heck, he probably wouldn't be left with his face had he made the comment! "Hey wait a minute," Joey called over to Levi. The short man turned a cold eye in his direction and the blond felt a chill spread across his body, a sensation he had forgotten since getting his ability. "So what's the deal with these suits, man? I don't have one of these costumes." Levi let out an exasperated sigh, this kid really was an idiot. "Don't you listen in class?! Everyone at Silverwing High has an outfit accommodated to their ability. You're only supposed to receive them on your final year, but since you're taking part in the tournament, we made an exception and are allowing you to use it just this once!" He said with his index raised, but the blond stared at him blankly making Levi want to slap his forehead, a gesture he hadn't needed to do in years. Instead, he opted to turn and walk away while mumbling inaudible remarks to himself.

Joey felt insulted being talked down to, especially by a much shorter man, but knowing Levi's reputation, he thought it best to keep his mouth shut for once. "I guess we better go then." Atem said nudging his fellow Egyptian in the arm so they could leave, snapping the blond out of his inner rant in the process. "Oh uh, yeah I guess so, bye guys!" he said following the other four to the private change rooms. Yugi, Tea and Serenity all cheered "Good luck!" in unison as they watched their friends disappear into the crowd of students. Moments later, Ishizu, a woman of few words, placed her hand on the principal's shoulder. "Mr. Pegasus," she whispered into his ear, "the participants will be ready in five minutes. If I were you, I would start getting ready." "How do you know?" He asked innocently, but the tan woman shot him a look that said 'You did not just seriously ask me that." and the principal threw his head back and laughed at his forgetfulness. How could he forget Ishizu's ability to see into the near future? "Of course silly me!"

Pegasus straightened his red suit and made his way over to the stage where a staff member handed him a mic. He tapped it a couple of times to get the students' attention and the room fell silent under the microphone's screeching echoing through the speakers. "Good morning students!" Pegasus beamed once the stinging noise faded out. A close-up of his face appeared on the three wide screen televisions hanging highly above him, each facing a different side of the stage so that the people sitting higher up in the bleachers could get a better view of the action. "I'm so happy to see so many familiar faces gathered here today to witness great face-offs between mutants! It is indeed a rare occasion and I am glad I get to share it with you all! Now for the moment you've all been waiting for, it gives me great pleasure to present to you your fighters!" Once finished, the ten contestants were cued in and lined up behind Pegasus in alphabetical order like they would have rehearsed it for hours. Atem was the first to walk in, followed by Duke, Joey, Mai, Marik, Mokuba, Rex, Seto, Tristan and Weevil. They all stood tall, legs slightly apart and arms behind their backs. Their outfits consisted of a black tank top, each with a different colored stripe on their sides and cross in the back.

All ten stared at the principal as he began listing the rules, "Now then, if I can get all of your attention on the screens above," he pointed one finger in the air and the students looked up as told, before the principal continued, "you will notice the outline in which our participants will be facing off. As you've probably noticed, they're all wearing a similar uniform but each with a different color. The duels will be determined by the colored cards I'll draw from this box." Pegasus gestured to the same man who had handed him the mic and who was now holding a cardboard box. He made his way over to the red suited man as he continued, "Before we start the draw, I would like to take a moment to thank all of the volunteers and staff members for bringing this tournament to life. Also, a big thanks to Kaiba Corp. for providing us with the latest force field technology that will surround the arena during the duels!" Seto would have normally smirked or bragged about his family's innovations, but at that moment, he was too distracted by Mai and Joey to care. He wanted to take a peek at the two, to see if they were holding hands or something of the sort, but he didn't dare with so many eyes fixated on him so he decided to focus all of his energy on the principal who had turned to face them. "As for the rules, for each duel you will only be permitted the use of your abilities and a single weapon, anything else will be considered cheating. Secondly, if you fall out of the ring, you're out. And finally, and most obviously, no killing. Attempt to break any of these three rules and you will be disqualified, understand?" The ten combatants nodded and Pegasus turned back to the audiences with a satisfied grin. "Now that it's all said and done, let's move on to the draw!"

The crowds burst into cheers, exited that the action was finally going to start! Pegasus dropped his hand inside the cardboard box and waved out a purple card. "Hum," he hummed looking at the teenager's corresponding color, it was Marik's. The red suited man curled his finger towards himself repetitively to have the boy to make his way beside him. One hand gesture was all it took for the Egyptian to understand he was to draw his opponent's card. Turning his head slightly, he shuffled the cards in the box before picking one out at random. Marik didn't need to turn around to know who he was about to face, he had memorised each fighter's color and couldn't help the twisted grin that marked his face as he stared at the silver card belonging to Rex. Oh how he felt blessed by the gods! What were the odds of him facing off against the single individual he had grudge against, in the first round! Now he could make him pay for hurting Bakura! He turned his head around slowly, his smile not fading as it met his upcoming opponent, both overjoyed at this chance to punish the other. "Alright!" Pegasus exclaimed placing the attention back on himself, "It has been decided! The first round of this Grand Tournament will consist of Marik Ishtar versus Rex Raptor! The match will start in fifteen minutes!"

* * *

Atem sat on the bench facing Marik, watching his friend pump his chest over the metal bar of the exercise machine set in the centre of their private room. "Oh man!" Marik breathed while dropping himself down, still hanging on to the bar before pulling himself back up. "I'm so pumped! I feel like I can do backflips right about now!" "You better not, you'll break your neck!" Atem laughed though he quickly regained his seriousness, "Don't take Rex on too lightly Marik, in an unrestricted match, he won't hold back." "And neither will I" He paused to smirk before continuing his chin ups. Atem stood up and moved closer to his friend, examining him closely with a smirk of his own. "This agitation of yours wouldn't have anything to do with a certain white haired guy we know, would it?" Marik paused again, only this time he wasn't smiling, "Of course it does Atem, he friggin tried to _rape_ him! Now I can teach him a proper lesson!" Atem sighed, though true, it wasn't the answer he was hoping to get out of his friend. "Is that the only reason?" he pressed, but the Egyptian ignored him and he pouted back to his seat in defeat. He watched him continue his workout when a familiar figure appeared in the door frame. "Why hello Bakura!" Atem exclaimed while staring at Marik to see his reaction. "Nice try Atem, I'm not falling for that again." He said pulling his chest over the bar once more. "H-hello fellas. Hope I'm not interrupting or anything." Bakura said timidly as he watched the sweat slide down the tan boy's flexed muscles, biting into his lip to hold back from drooling.

The sweet sound of Bakura's voice caught the Egyptian by surprise. He turned his head slightly in the pale boy's direction and his smile made him shiver with delight, only his sweating increased from nervousness. He tried tightening his hands around the metal bar but they had become too clammy, he couldn't hold on and crashed onto the floor. His head was buzzing and he felt dizzy, but he didn't feel as though it was due to his fall… Could he be remembering something again? Suddenly, he was hit with a migraine and he yanked at his hair as if to pull the pain away. Yes, he was definitely about to remember something…

* * *

 _Marik turned around and looked at the man who so indiscreetly commented on his 'nice ass' in the middle of the public gym, luckily there was no one else in hearing distance. "What, can't handle a simple compliment?"Bakura smirked, standing a few feet away with his arms crossed. "What the frig?! Why would you say that to me?!" Marik stood up holding his fist close to the other's mouth. "Isn't it obvious?" The white haired boy shrugged playfully, "I think you have a nice ass. You know it's common courtesy to say 'thank you'." Marik was about to rage out when the most amazing view came in sight, this handsome stranger… removed his shirt and ah… was he gorgeous! His alabaster skin was smooth and decorated with muscles all over: a six pack, huge biceps and impeccable pecs! Marik was at a loss for words, never had he seen such beauty in a young man before, other than himself of course. Bakura glanced back at him and chuckled, "Like what you see?" The Egyptian snapped out of his daze and returned to his state of rage, "How dare you insinuate such a grotesque thing! I happen to have noble blood coursing through my veins! Unlike you, you common peasant!" "Yes well with all the sluts Kings have slept with over the years, who knows if we don't share a common ancestor? Heck, I might even be your cousin." "I… highly doubt that…" Bakura stared in bewilderment at the other, fumbling his words until he could find the right ones, "You… You do realise that was a joke right?" "If it was a joke, then why aren't I laughing?" he replied with a know-it-all grin while gesturing his finger sideways._

 _The pale boy slapped his forehead and sighed loudly as he turned to grab his gym bag and leave. He was pulled backwards after one step by a firm tan hand on his wrist and was spun around. "Hey! Don't ignore me! Do you know who I am?!" Marik shouted, but Bakura smirked and purred into the Egyptian's ear, "I know exactly who you are Marik Ishtar." Marik suddenly felt uneasy and wanted to back away but, the pale boy held him close by his arm and continued, "You're the one who's been running around robbing stores under the name of Rare Hunter, stealing the attention away from my good name! I had just gotten myself a good reputation, and by that I obviously mean as a badass, and now no one even remembers the great Thief King." Marik was surprised, the stranger didn't sound angry, but he knew something was up, "So what if I am? Is little white-y gonna cry because nobody's paying him attention anymore?" he tease mimicking a small child. The tan boy knew he had pushed a button when he felt a sharp object slip under his throat. He didn't dare move in fear of aggravating the stranger more and risking getting his throat slit. "I never cry," Bakura retorted in the calmest tone, teasing the knife around the bronze skin, "you on the other hand, are a whiny bitch."_

 _He pulled the knife away and hid it back in his pocket before putting his shirt back on and staring menacingly at the other who held his hands around his throat for protection. "What do you want from me?" Marik finally asked matching the other's calmness, though his eyes betrayed his fear of the man. Bakura's grin grew wide and cupped his hands around Marik's cheeks, making him flinch. "What could I possibly want from you? I just wanted to check out my competition and now I realise I was worried for nothing!" "What's that supposed to mean?!" Marik snapped back to his old self, moving his head away from Bakura's hands. The pale boy threw his head back laughing with amusements. "It means you're not good enough to pull off hikes of my calibre!" He grinned and the other mimicked him, "Says who? Maybe I've just been working my way up on purpose." "In that case, how would you like to jump straight to the big leagues with me?" Marik gave him a quizzical look to which Bakura responded by handing him the morning paper. "What's this?" Marik asked reading over the title. "The Mayor's wife in Paris **(1)** is coming here to showcase her latest jewelry collection. Normally I work on my own, but for such a big project, I would require an assistant. Everything is going to be kept safe at the Winsdale Mansion **(2)**." "Winsdale Mansion?!" Marik cried out in shock, but Bakura quickly closed his hand over the other's mouth to shush him. "Quiet!" He growled looking over for anyone that might have heard before removing his hand. "That place is full of security measures, not to mention how huuuuge it is! How the frig are we supposed to get in and out with the jewels?!" Marik exclaimed in a whispered tone this time. "What's wrong, not feeling up to it?" Bakura smirked waving him off and grabbing his bag to leave. "It's up to you. You can continue with your petty robberies, or… I can tell you my plan over a cup of tea." Marik hesitated for a second, but quickly walked up to the man smirking, "It's a date then." "Bakura." "Huh?" "Bakura, that's my name."_

* * *

Marik massaged his temples as the blur cleared from his vision and the buzzing ceased in his ears. When he came to, he turned to see Atem holding Bakura, concern had invaded his senses. "Bakura! Bakura speak to me!" He shook the pale boy gently and received a moan in response. "I-I'm fine Atem, thank you." He used the Egyptian's arm to push himself back up, wobbling a bit before finding his balance. "What happened to you just now? One second you're fine and the next I'm rushing over to catch you falling unconscious! You need to go see the nurse!" Atem exclaimed, grabbing hold of Bakura's wrist. "You don't have to worry, it happens sometimes…" "Did you remember something from your memory?" Marik cut in, slowly rising to his feet as the white haired boy nodded. "Were we in a workout room? And planning to steal from Winsdale mansion?" "You saw it too?!" Bakura flushed bright pink from the embarrassment of his Yami's first comment, leaving Atem utterly confused about the situation, "Did I miss something?" he asked and the two looked at him unsure of what to tell him. "I'll explain later, okay?" Marik said scratching the back of his head. Atem pouted and crossed his arms, but remained quiet, knowing it probably wasn't the time for a long needed explanation. Instead, he turned to the pale boy, "Bakura, why did you come in earlier?" "Oh, well uh, Nurse Cecelia wanted me to fetch the contestants, the duel's about to start." He said the last part to Marik looking down and tapping his indexes together, "C-Could I ask you a favor?" "Anything!" the Egyptian said overly excited and leaning forward to be closer to the boy. "C-Could you come with me to get Rex? I don't really trust him around me." "Of course! Don't worry, there's no way I'll let him touch you!" Marik said almost growling at the end. "Thank you." Bakura gently grabbed the Egyptian's clenched hand and lead him out of the room, slowly followed by Atem who eyed them smirking and thinking to himself, "Those two are soooooo gay for each other."

* * *

 **(1): I don't actually know how the government works in France so I just said they have a Mayor. :P**

 **(2): Winsdale Mansion is not a real place either, I made it up! :D (But I'll be surprised if it is...)**

 **If you guys are interested in seeing what the outfits look like, I posted a drawing I made of Marik vs Rex on my Deviantart account:** **art/Yami-Marik-vs-Rex-573873220**

 **Who's excited for the next chapter?! I am! Marik vs Rex, what will happen next? XD**

 **Please review, that would be nice! :D I love getting ideas and knowing how to improve my story, that's always the goal!**


	11. Round 1

**I mean't to post this in the morning, but I had some priorities I had to deal with first. I'm not really good with describing a setting, just a head's up.**

 **Also, WARNING: contains violence and blood (but if you've read this far I don't think it should be a problem :P )**

 **Chapter 11: Round 1**

* * *

Bakura escorted Marik and Rex to the arena and he made sure to stay as close to the Egyptian and as far away from the brunet as possible. Luckily, the short boy didn't try anything, but his lustful stares did make him feel quite uncomfortable. Pegasus was standing center stage and invited both competitors to join him. "Good luck," Bakura whispered in Marik's ear, "I'll be rooting for you!" The Egyptian smiled at the pale boy before making his way onto the stage where Rex awaited him impatiently, patting his foot on the ground with arms crossed over his chest.

One meter inside the perimeter of the arena was an upper stage about knee-length from the ground. Marik jumped up onto it and made his way strutting over to Rex, enjoying the jealousy in his dark orbs. The moment was simply too perfect for boasting, but the principal had to ruin his moment with yet another one of him lame speeches, "Hello again, Rex and Marik! Just a reminder for our audience that this is an elimination round and the winner will be determined when one of you either falls out of the ring (which was the whole point of having an upper stage), is unable to continue fighting, falls unconscious or gives up. With that said, killing is forbidden, but you are however, allowed to inflict each other a number of injuries. Now if you will both choose a weapon." Pegasus gestured to the load of weapons hanging on the board behind him. The two fighters looked them all over intently before deciding on one. Rex ended up choosing a black belt with long metal spikes and Marik went for a pair of twin daggers, a weapon he had mastered the use of long ago.

Pegasus continued his explanations as two staff members removed the board of weapons from the stage, "Now come and face each other," he instructed and the two fighters obeyed, "and shake hands!" The two remained still and silent, glaring into each other's eyes with anger and hate. They waited, hoping this part would be magically skipped over, but the principal insisted, "Go on then." He said and the two reluctantly grabbed the other's hand, each trying to squeeze it harder than the other. "Alright that's enough." The red suited man went on, "Now turn around and take ten steps away from each other. You may start whenever you hear the buzzer." With that, he retreated back to his seat and signaled a staff member through the tiny microphone on his collar to activate the force field. The small contraptions on each end of the arena suddenly lit up and sent an upward blue light that spread across to meet the other ends before turning invisible.

The students were amazed by the latest KaibaCorp technology, which made Seto very happy from where he was sitting. Atem noticed this too and would have teased him about it, but thought it best to instead let him dwell in what little happiness he had been given these past few days. He was sat next to the other tri-colored haired boy and couldn't help but smirk at the intensity of which Bakura stared at the blond Egyptian. "Psst, Yugi!" he whispered over to his neighbour, "Check out Bakura!" "What about him?" Yugi asked confused, trying to see what was up. "He's totally worried for Marik!" "It's normal to worry for someone about to get into a fight." He replied in the same confused tone. "It's more than that. Look a little closer, you'll see he has a thing for Marik." "Huh?!" Yugi exclaimed looking back at his friend. He was standing a few feet away, next to Nurse Cecilia by the entrance to the arena. His fists were clenched at his heart and the pale boy was biting his lower lip as he stared at the Egyptian with concern overwhelming his brown eyes. Yugi couldn't believe it, maybe Atem was on to something… "Hey, what are you two talking about?" Tea asked leaning closer to Yugi, but the boy slouched back into his seat and dismissed her, "Oh nothing!" he said with a nervous smile.

"Kick his butt Marik!" Bakura shouted through cupped hands with a small smile on his lips for encouragement. The tanned boy nodded, "I will!" This display of affection was beginning to make the dino-lover sick, how dare anyone try and steal his little toy away from him! And how dare his precious Snowflake refuse him for another! "Hey you!" he shouted over to Marik, raising his fist, "Stop flirting with my pet over there! He's mine you hear?!" This pissed off the Egyptian who glared menacingly at the other, "Better watch yourself Rex," he growled, "continue obsessing over Bakura like that and you'll make me angry. And believe me, you won't like me when I'm angry." "Fuck you! _You're_ the one getting in our way!" Marik paused for a second before bursting into a fit of laughter, "Are you stupid?!" he grinned wiping away a tear, "I think you're confusing your fantasies with reality there, shorty!" "Oh shut up! You act all cocky and strong, but I know you're weaker than me! You just caught me off guard last time!" Marik threw his head back and laughed again, angering the sharp toothed boy even more. "If you think you can beat me, then how about we make a deal. The loser has to stay away from Snowflake!" Marik crossed his arms and shook his head. "No. I'm not fighting you over him."

Bakura felt his heart drop. Did he hear him right? Marik _wasn't_ going to fight for him? He knew the chances of him returning his feelings were slim, he was probably even the type of guy to crush on every cute girl in school, but at least, he thought… he hoped, Marik would stand up for him… "I won't agree to those terms because I know you're not a man of your word Rex. Besides, it's up to Bakura and what _he_ wants." Marik turned and winked at the white haired boy, satisfied when he saw the smile spread across his face and the blush highlighting his cheeks. "Just stop that! Just stop it!" Rex raged at the Egyptian before turning to the Principal, "What are you waiting for old man?! Start the duel already!" "Oh my mistake! Please forgive me, your conversation was just so interes-" "Shut the fuck up and press the fucking button already!" Pegasus pouted at this. He knew he was being insulted and despite his child-like behavior, he wasn't as oblivious to the situation as he let on. When his wife Cecelia reported that two boys were heavily beaten by two of the exchanged students, Pegasus had a good mind to send them back at Darkwing High, but the victims hadn't told the nurse the information needed to allow him to take matters into hands. With Bakura and Yugi only testifying to getting beaten, and _nothing_ else, Pegasus could only assign Rex and Weevil a month's worth of detention, as well as banning them from the week's activities other than the tournament seeing as the victims requested they participate. So there he sat, listening to the conversation that, to many students seemed confusing, revealed the actual cause of one of the beatings.

Pegasus sighed and reluctantly pressed a button on the remote he was holding, and a loud buzzer echoed across the speakers. As soon as Rex heard the noise, he launched himself towards his adversary, growing extra sharp bones out of his forearms and biceps, as well as two more on each leg through the designated holes in his pants. Marik swiftly blocked his punches with his daggers and pushed him back leaving a small cut across the brunet's chest. "Why you!" he growled staring murderously at the spiky haired boy who stood tall with arms crossed and staring back with a maniacal grin. "Did you really think you were just going to walk up here and easily beat the crap out of me?" Marik threw his head back in a wild laugh, but once he brought it back down, he looked like an entirely different person. His pupils shrunk and were barely distinct anymore, veins pulsed alongside his chin and arms, but the most noticeable change was the shiny Eye of Wdjat that now decorated his forehead. "I don't even need these things to beat you!" he cried in a double-voice as he threw back the sharp weapons in his hand. "You little bitch!" Rex charged at the Egyptian once more, but the other easily caught both his fists in his hands, not flinching back as he did so. He brought his face down close to the brunet's with an evil grin, right before blasting him with an invisible force that propelled the light body many feet away.

The crowd who was once shocked and somewhat frightened by the tanned boy's sudden change, now cheered loudly for more action. Rex was humiliated. He couldn't stand having the audience, and especially Bakura, cheering against him! "Way to go Marik!" the white haired boy shouted above the crowd. "C-curse y-you!" Rex groaned shakily as he slowly lifted his aching body up from tiled floor. Those words, as so many others have the past day, triggered a sudden migraine in the Egyptian's head. Marik tugged roughly at his hair and groaned loudly trying to balance himself on his feet. His eyes were becoming blurry and his hearing was buzzing with an irritable high-pitched screech. "No, not again! Not now!" He pleaded with himself before falling to his knees and succumbing to yet another memory.

* * *

 _"Curse you! You're a monster! I know it was you, not me!" Marik was in a small dark room lit by candles. He had his arms pressed against the sink and stared angrily at his reflection with tears running down his eyes. "Well? Answer me!" This was odd. He could once again see through the eyes of his hikari, touch and hear everything he did, as well as feel his emotions as though they were his own. Marik felt his hikari betrayed at the moment, but unless he mentioned the cause of his pain, he would never know what happened. "Why won't you talk to me?! I know you're listening!" The Egyptian looked different somehow and his voice had a higher pitch to it, which led him to believe he was much younger, maybe ten? But how could that be? The farthest he could remember existing was when he awoke on that cold floor last September, but if this younger Marik felt his presence inside him, did that mean he had been dormant for years prior? "Stop ignoring me!" the small boy pressed, "It was you! You made me kill him! And you made me enjoy it! You're a monster! Why would you make me do it! Why did you want my father dead?!" At this the Egyptian crashed to the floor and held his head, sobbing. "Why? Why? Why? Why?" "He won't answer you Master Marik." A deep voice said from within the dark corner of the room. Marik hadn't noticed the man until he felt himself pulled into a warm embraced. "He will not bother you again." He assured the boy who looked up at him teary-eyed, "Are you sure?" "Yes Master Marik. My ability allows me to cast spirits and ghosts away, but since this one is connected to you, I didn't want to risk hurting you so I put him in a deep sleep. The tattoo on my face is proof that the seal has worked." "Thank you Odion."_

 _Little Marik snuggled into his brother's arms and thought back on the event that happened hours earlier, which allowed the yami to remember as well. Ishizu had taken her younger brother outside to test out his new ability. This was all so new to him and he needed to learn how to control it before he could cause any more accidental damage to the sacred scrolls and documents they kept hidden inside the house. Their father Hank, however, never allowed them to set foot outside, saying it was taboo and the Gods would not forgive them for it. Absorbed by their desire to learn of Marik's new-found power, Ishizu and her little brother disobeyed their father and snuck out unnoticed during the night, but as they returned before dawn, the young boy heard a deafening scream coming from inside the house and recognised it as his older brother's. He rushed in blindly with Ishizu on his tail and found the old man whipping the bleeding servant on the floor. "Stop it!" he cried and the man lowered his arm and turned to face his two children in the doorway. "Well, well, look who decided to return! Since you have disrespected the Gods, it is up to me to cleanse you of your sins!" It was at that moment that Marik felt the good side of him being sealed away deep inside of him, allowing him to fill up with the rage and strength needed to accomplish the unthinkable. The young one ran for the drawer and withdrew a small blade. He caught the end of the whip that lashed at his arm and pulled its owner forward on the floor before launching himself onto the old man and stabbing him multiple times in the back. His senses soon returned to him and Marik pulled away petrified of the corpse lying in the pool of blood. How? How could he have done it? Either he had pushed his good nature away somewhere inside of him, or some other part of him dragged it away, like an evil spirit! Young Marik hadn't the slightest idea, but preferred the latter as he refused to believe himself capable of wrongdoing. Could this be the consequence Ishizu had told him about? "Sister help me! There's something inside of me and it made me do it! I'm so scared please help me!" The small and confused boy sobbed as he watched his sibling stare down at him petrified. Frightened by the repercussions that his actions might entail, Marik ran back into his room to hide under the safety of his covers._

* * *

Buzzing, that's all the Egyptian could hear once the flashback finished and he was brought back to reality. The audience's cries mixed in with the screeching sound until it was finally tuned out. Marik could feel again, and boy was he in pain! He lied on his back with his cheek numb and stomach soar. No doubt had Rex hit him a couple of times before he zoned out, and in those few seconds, managed to push his anger over the top. Yes, Marik was pissed beyond belief. Not only did he have to remember another memory, but the timing for it was completely inappropriate! Those things hurt you know! Not only that, but it left him even more confused about his past and how he came to be and Rex would be the one to pay for it.

"What's the matter blondie? Have you given up already?!" The brunet stood a foot away from the kneeling Egyptian. He had slapped him across de face and kicked him in the stomach, but the husky man refused to tumble backwards, even in his unconscious state. Marik gasped when he felt a sharp twinge in his stomach and looked down at the forming red pool across his black tank top. His eyes widened in fright at the other who returned his glare with a grin as he pulled his arm back quickly, the outer bone sticking out of his forearm covered with the Egyptian's blood. He burst into a fit of laughter and watched as his opponent crouched over, coughing out blood while his little Snowflake watched helplessly as his love interest was battered and beaten. Now he would finally see that _he_ was worthy of him and not the lame defeated Egyptian at his feet. "I asked you a question you little brat!" Rex removed his spiky belt and lashed it at the Egyptian's face like a whip, to which he other finally fell back against the floor with blood streaming from his cheek. Marik stopped moving.

"I-I did it! I won! Ah ha! You there, start the countdown!" The designated man, Roland, brought his mic up to his mouth and began to count, "One… Two… Three…" "No Marik, get up! You can't let him win!" Bakura shouted over to the blond, but received no response. "Four… Five… Six…" Yugi tugged nervously at his neighbor's arm, "Atem, what happened to Marik? Why isn't he fighting back?" "Don't worry Yugi, Marik likes to play around, he'll be fine." He tried to sound reassuring, but he too felt the same concerns his friend did. It was unusual for the Egyptian to suddenly black out during a fight and he feared this time he wouldn't be able to recover… "Seven… Eight… Nine…" Rex was overflown with joy! This was it! His moment of redemption! He wanted to gloat, to rub it in his opponent's face so he strutted over to the Egyptian and muttered to him, "As soon as I'm declared the winner, I'm going to go get my victory kiss from Snowflake!" "Te-" A muscular bronze arm shot up and wrapped its long delicate fingers around the exposed neck. Rex tried to pull away from the other's grip, but the angry Egyptian held him in place. In his futile struggle for air, he noticed Marik's pupil were reduced, veins popped from his chin and arms, and the glowing eye reappeared on his forehead. The crowds gasped from the sudden movement and watched with anticipation the still figures down on the stage.

Marik was out of it. His body didn't respond to his wishes, that is, until he heard Rex whisper into his ear. His words struck a nerve, a nerve that allowed him to regain his senses and awaken his ability once more. He had sworn to Bakura, the only connection he had to his past, that he wouldn't let Rex touch him, and he would be damned if he let the insolent little twerp have his way with his friend when he knew he had the strength to stop him. Fury, rage, hate, Marik felt it all. He gently propelled himself upwards and threw the small brunet a foot away where he floated in the air, trapped in the Egyptian's telekinesis. Rex had been careless, he realised that now. His rival was no doubt pretending to be asleep just to get him close to him. His mind ability only worked at a certain distance and on still objects… He was done from the minute the tanned hand wrapped itself around his throat, but refused to give in and kicked and batted at the air. Marik would have laughed at his futile attempt at freedom had he not been so tired. His body was too weak to properly move on its own so he would have to depend on the power of his mind instead. He stood there, body limp and barely standing with his head hung low, visualising all the pain he was about to inflict upon his opponent.

The two daggers he had previously thrown away suddenly wobbled away from the floor and up into the air where one moved next to Marik's head, and the other shot past Rex. The brunet couldn't help but smirk at the other's clumsiness, "Ha! Ha! Ha! You missed you fo-" Rex gasped when the sharp metallic blade pierced his lower back. He was wrong. Marik had planned this and was just toying with him, reveling in his pain as he had done previously. Now he knew, bound and with no way of escaping, the Egyptian was going to torture him. Rex grimaced and began to shake, he felt something he hadn't felt in years… scared, and he was right to be; his reflection was short-lived as his pain suddenly increased tenfold! The second dagger shot right into his shoulder while the other was removed abruptly and pierced his foot. This went on for a while. Rex was continuously stabbed in his legs, chest, stomach, and shoulders and scratched just as many times across the face. When the twin blades dropped to the floor, Rex thought Marik might have finally passed out, but he was sorely mistaken and in fact, the real torture was just about to begin… Rex could feel his forearm being pulled backwards against his will. He tried to fight it, but it was inevitable. The bone broke out of his elbow, then came the second and both shoulders popped out of their sockets. Rex cried in agony, but Marik ignored him and continued his ministrations. Next came the legs which were snapped forward and the knee-breaking, bone-shattering sound echoed in the silent room as many teenagers gasped, cried or even puked at the sight of the blood spurting across the stage. Marik felt merciless, drawn by his over protectiveness of Bakura, he twisted the sharp toothed boy's ankles and wrists before dropping the broken body on the cold hard floor.

A whistle was blown and something about the winner being decided was exclaimed through the speakers, though Marik hardly heard it, feeling woozy from his ability leaving him. He stumbled backwards before falling into the empty space behind him and waited to make contact with the square tiles, but he instead found himself caressed by warm arms that laid him down gently. "You won Marik." The soft happy voice was all too familiar. The Egyptian tried to open his eyes, but moaned as he was too tired to even accomplish the simple task. He felt Bakura lifting him up bridal style and placing him on a bed of some kind, no doubt a stretcher. Had it been anyone one else, he would have probably thrown a fit, but he found comfort in the idea of the beautiful boy taking care of him and let himself be swept off his feet, before being led into the medic room.

* * *

 **Few notes for Rex: His ability is based off of Kimimaro from Naruto, and I had absolutely no clue what weapon to give for this scene, considering he uses his ability as a weapon... sorry if a spiky belt is lame, but at least I got him to use it once! :P**

 **As for Marik, we're slowly finding more about his past! Oooooh! That's exciting, I mean even I'm still figuring stuff out as I'm writing! :)**

 **I know I've said this before, but I will try to upload the next chapter before or on Christmas since I'm still on the draft.**

 **Please review, that would be great! :)**


	12. He will fight

**Hello everyone! Alright, I know I said I wanted to post this chapter on Christmas or Christmas eve, (which was a month ago) but the key word was TRY. I've been pretty busy lately, and my new series had been bugging me so I decided to go ahead and write the first chapter instead of finishing this one, sorry. But hey, I haven't given up on this so don't worry if they get posted monthly instead weekly now. :)**

 **This chapter doesn't really have a goal so would this be considered fluff or a filler or something? Also I couldn't really think of a title...**

 **Chapter 12: He will fight**

* * *

Everything happened so quickly. After a while, Rex had stopped feeling the pain and felt himself wasting away. But he didn't want to go, not yet, so he held on and fought through the torture he was being given. He hardly registered being taken away to the medic room and that the pain was starting to fade away.

Was this how death felt like? No… he was starting to wake up… and whose voice was that? Bakura's?

"Nurse please help him! He's bleeding out!"

"Just keep applying pressure on the wound, I need to fix this one first!"

Rex finally opened his eyes. He was on a stretcher about a meter away from the one his rival was lying on. He sat up and slowly tried to reach out to him, to strangle him, and take Bakura in his arms, but he was too weak to fight the nurse who lay him back down and injected something in his arm. He wanted to scream, to fight back, but the drug started to take effect and slowly, his eyes forced themselves shut.

"This isn't over…" Rex swore before falling asleep.

Cecelia rushed over to her other patient. Rex had taken a longer time to heal considering his bones were unbelievably broken and popped out of place, but she was used to it. She had healed more than one person in a row before and though it required a lot of energy, she knew she could do it. Marik could still be saved, she just had to focus really hard. Cecelia removed the previously white towel off of the wound and pressed her glowing green palms on the gash. The Egyptian growled even in his unconscious state and after a few minutes of intense healing, Marik's wound had magically closed without leaving a scar.

"I'll take Rex in the back, you want to finish up here?" Cecelia offered as she returned to Rex's stretcher.

"Sure." Bakura replied and the beautiful blond woman nodded before taking the sleeping boy into one of the separate rooms.

Bakura sat on the stretcher next to Marik's legs and fiddled with the bloody towel he had previously used to prevent the bleeding.

"How are you feeling?" He asked turning to face the Egyptian.

Said man grunted as he lifted himself up and brought his hand to his stomach. "I've been better."

Bakura noted how sick he sounded and couldn't help but frown. "Here, maybe this will help." He said as he lifted the back of the stretcher and slowly reached out for Marik's shoulder.

He wanted to touch him so badly… To be close to him… though not in a perverted way of course, but he just had these feelings for the man and he figured he could at least _try_ to show his interest in him … Marik's over-protectiveness for him sure didn't help his case, if anything, it only made the Egyptian more attractive! Damn it! His hand was shaking now from all the nerves, but would Marik notice? Oh God he hoped not!

"Are you alright?"

Bakura looked down at Marik who had now placed his hand over the pale boy's. He was beyond nervous and wanted to pull his hand away, but the Egyptian held it tight against his collarbone.

"Y-yes I'm fine." He said offering him a fake smile though he knew the other wasn't buying it.

Still, Marik remained silent and allowed himself to be guided down against the elevated seat and watched as the boy with fluffy white hair make his way around the stretcher and sit down next to his legs where he fiddled with the stained towel again. Bakura wasn't even looking back at him, and Marik had had enough. He quickly reached out and threw the towel across the room before cupping Bakura's chin and forcing him to look back into his violent orbs. Bakura was shocked by his friend's sudden reaction and couldn't help the heat rising to his cheeks as the strong tan hands remained glued to his pale chin.

"Why are you always so nervous around me?" He asked a little upset, "Do I make you uncomfortable?"

Of course Bakura was uncomfortable at the moment, his face was inches away from his crush's, not to mention his hands were firmly holding on to his chin like a man would do right before kissing his girlfriend...

"No, no, it's just that, uh, I uh, well you see, I... You…" Bakura searched for the right words and as a reflex, he lowered his head to think, only to gaze upon the dry blood that still covered Marik's stomach. The Egyptian looked down as well to see what the other was looking at, and a thought crossed his mind.

"I think I get it now..." he brought the other's head back to level and stared into his chocolate eyes as if to reveal life-changing information.

Bakura gulped, fearing the tan boy had discovered his secret.

"You're afraid of blood aren't you?!"

Bakura didn't reply, he was baffled by such a far-off theory. In all honesty, blood had never fazed him; he was a huge fan of the occult and loved to watch gory movies!

"That would explain a lot actually, like why you turned all red yesterday when we were at the infirmary, I mean, there was _a lot_ of blood back there." Marik continued processing his thoughts out loud, but Bakura couldn't bring himself to tell him otherwise.

At least for now, maybe it was better to let him believe he did have hemophobia, that way he wouldn't have to actually explain why he constantly acted like a ticking bomb.

"I guess I should wash up then." Marik said placing a hand on his stomach as he slowly tried to lift himself off the stretcher.

"Oh no, no, no, no, no! You stay right there, it's my job to take care of you after all." Bakura smiled and headed to the nearest washroom, returning with a wet cloth.

"You're going to clean the blood off of me?" The Egyptian asked confused, trying to take the fabric away from the smaller boy only for the other to hold it out of reach. "If blood makes you gag, I can do it myself you know."

"Don't be silly, this is nothing." Bakura insisted, starting to dab the area where the Egyptian had previously been stabbed.

He worked slowly around the blood, taking as much time to wash the abs and feel every strong muscle underneath his fingertips. The sensuality of his actions made Bakura realise cleaning the bronze skin was more for perverted reasons than it was for actually doing his job, but surprisingly, he found himself okay with that. Marik was also feeling the effect of the white haired boy's gentle touch and did not want the soft ministrations to end. Bakura had dragged it on for as long as he could, but after a couple of minutes, the blood was all soaked up and he had no more reason to continue.

He sighed and returned Marik's sorrowful expression. "I'm going to go wash this out, I'll give you your shot when you get back."

"S-shot?!"

The Egyptian was overtaken by a sudden wave of panic. He hated needles, hated them with a capital 'H'! He could never stand having the tiny object inject some sort of unknown liquid inside his body, what if something went wrong? What if he's given too much? That had been the case when he needed his vaccinations before flying to the new continent, he had received an overdose, but luckily, thanks to his strong body resistance, he made it out with minor side-effects such as headaches and stomach aches.

His horrified eyes watched as Bakura's nimble fingers flick the needle a couple of times before walking over to him and bringing the deadly weapon next to his arm.

"No! No, get that thing away from me!" Marik screamed, grabbing Bakura's wrists and keeping them as far away from his arm as possible.

"M-Marik what are you doing?!" The white haired boy jumped, but still held on to the syringe and tried to break free from the hard grasp on his frail wrist.

They swung left and right and the pale boy almost broke free, however, the Egyptian was faster and stood up, spun the other around and pinned him on the stretcher.

"Marik, please get off of me!"

"No, I'm not moving until you put that thing away."

"Ahem." A tall man with slicked back brown hair and ice-blue eyes coughed a couple of times at the door.

"Seto let me through!" Atem said slipping between the door-frame and the other's arm. "O.-M.-G! Marik! I had no idea you and Bakura were moving this quickly in your relationship!"

He winked at his friend and the blond Egyptian blushed wildly, throwing his hands in the air to defend himself.

"I-it's not what it looks like!" He insisted, and suddenly felt something cold in his forearm.

He looked down and saw the dreaded needle come out of his arm, and Bakura smiling with satisfaction.

"See, that wasn't so bad now was it?"

Marik's eyelids fluttered shut and his body collapsed on top of the smaller boy, trapping him against the stretcher.

"Marik I can't move!"

"Your… fault…" The Egyptian smirked before passing out with his head resting in the nook of Bakura's neck.

The pale boy tried to shake the other off in vain, so he threw his head back to glance at the other two individuals standing at the entrance, but could only see an upside down Seto and a bit of Atem's black and magenta hair.

"Could you help me please?" The pale boy asked, only to be answered with laughter from the small Egyptian with red-pinkish eyes.

"Nah, I think I'm think I'm enjoying this sight way too much!" Atem laughed, holding on to his stomach as if it was about to burst.

Then, the teen was silenced by a sudden piercing scream coming from the back room, followed by multiple sounds of furniture being knocked over. The door flung open and a full out extra boned-arms Rex ran towards the couple on the gurney, cursing at them for all the pain he suffered. Atem instantly tackled the sharp-toothed boy and the two flew across the room and crashed against the far-off wall. Rex easily broke out of Atem's hold, seeing as the Egyptian had hit his head against the door-frame and lost consciousness. He began to crawl back towards the gurney, only to be stopped by Seto's foot on his back.

"I think that's quite enough." He said, applying a little more pressure and sending cold energy waves through his skin and into Rex's spine.

"W-what are you doing?" he muttered, chattering his teeth from the cold spreading through his body.

"Oh this? I guess you can say it's one of my special techniques. I'm temporarily paralysing you so that you won't try to hurt my friend over there. You've caused him enough trouble as it is, don't you agree?"

Rex grunted. He wanted to spit curses at the other towering over him, but he was freezing and his mind was slowly fading back to darkness. He had built up a resistance against whatever sleeping drug the nurse had injected him with, but paralysis? That was something entirely different…

Bakura watched as his stalker closed his eyes once again to fall asleep. His instincts had told him to protect Marik, so had he wrapped his arms around the blond's head and held him, even now when he was safe, he refused to let go.

"You didn't kill him did you?" He asked weakly, gazing up at Seto. The tall adolescent shook his head to which Bakura sighed, and was grateful when the other lifted Marik's shoulders so he could get back on his feet. Before he could even ask the famous question 'What now?', the ceiling intercom rang, meaning someone was about to make an announcement.

"Hello students!" Pegasus chirped, "I hope none of you have been scarred by the last match's rather… hum… explicit violence. If there are any students that would like to leave, now is the time. I've selected the next line-up, which consists of Tristan vs Atem! The next round will begin in ten minutes!"

Bakura and Seto exchanged a quick glance before turning to Atem simultaneously. Seto began to shake him vigorously, but the teen refused to wake up.

"Shit!"

"What do we do now?!" Bakura rushed over to Seto who placed a gentle hand on the pale boy's shoulder.

"We don't have much time. I'll take care of everything here, you get Yugi, now!"

"B-but what can Yugi do?" Seto tightened his hold on Bakura's shoulder to which he let out a small whimper, fear evident in his eyes.

"Quit being sentimental! We don't have much time before the next round and I refuse to let Atem get disqualified, I need to fight against the best in the finals, you hear me?!"

The CEO of KaibaCorp released Bakura, who hugged himself and at that moment, wished he hadn't drugged his friend to sleep. Without a second though, he ran out of the room, leaving Seto to pick at one of the lockers, pulling out a gel jar and a spray can of sorts.

* * *

Pegasus sat with legs crossed and chin resting on his fingers. His leg sway up and down, annoying the focused woman with raven colored hair at his side.

"Be patient Mr. Pegasus, the next round will begin soon enough."

Ishizu always referred to her coworkers by their title as it was her custom, but the principal never bothered with such formalities between friends, even in his work environment.

"I know you're right, but this is just so exciting!"

Ishizu snorted. "I don't see what's so appealing about a child getting his body twisted by another and left on the brink of death, Mr. Pegasus."

"Yes, perhaps Marik did go a little too far, but at least he didn't kill anyone."

"Not yet."

The dark skinned woman at his side was shrouded in a mystery Pegasus couldn't decipher. She was known to be a caring woman when it came to kids, but whenever he mentioned her family, she would turn cold and almost uncaring. He didn't push it, and instead thought to change the subject.

"Say Ishizu dear, why don't we bet on who is going to win the next duel, hmm? I believe Atem will come out victorious. What do you think?"

She shrugged. "Neither."

Pegasus briefly wondered if she didn't care or if she had foreseen a draw in the upcoming match. A pale finger tapped his shoulder and the man turned to find Bakura standing next to him.

"Ah! Bakura, what can I do for you my boy?"

"Hum, I just wanted to let you know that Rex has complications so Mrs. Cecelia is going to stay with him until he gets better."

Pegasus could sense the Egyptian lady behind him giving him the "I-told-you-so" stare, but he refused to meet her gaze and give her the acknowledgement she wanted.

"Atem is ready." Bakura continued timidly, pointing to the dark skinned man with star-shaped hair walking up to the podium with Seto at his side.

"Well then, I guess that's my cue!" Pegasus cheered as he swallowed the flight of stairs and made his way onto the stage.

Tristan soon followed, standing tall before the short Egyptian, lips spread into a grin.

"And we are back students!" The principal beamed into his microphone and the crowds cheered excitedly.

"Tristan and Atem, please choose your weapon." He gestured to the board behind him, and the shorter of the two immediately went for a belt with three smokescreen balls clipped on each side. As for the bald and bold, he chose a large axe which he carried over his shoulder like a murderous lumberjack.

"Wonderful!" The silver haired man continued, "I think our dear students have been patient enough, so I won't waste any more time. Please come and shake hands."

The two did as instructed, though Tristan took the opportunity to give his adversary a taste of his power, but Atem's face remained undisturbed. They turned around and took ten steps in the opposite direction and waited for the hear buzzer to start the match. Pegasus had jogged back to his seat, hoping he didn't look too ridiculous doing so, while his employees removed the weapon board from the stage. The force field was activated, amazing the students once again, and finally, he pushed the little button on the remote he held and a loud ringing noise blasted out of the speakers.

The short man with bronze skin spun on his heels quickly and threw one of the miniature silver balls at his opponent who easily caught it in the palm of his hand. "Ha! Is that the best you - Argh!" The small object exploded in his hand, sending him back a few steps, lost in the dark smoke. He coughed into his elbow as two more exploded on his right, and another one on the left, shaking the floor and increasing the vision barrier. He was knocked a couple steps back as a foot connected with his abdomen. Tristan crouched slightly in pain, but otherwise stayed alert to his surroundings. He swung his axe left and right blindly, and listened to the Egyptian running around until he stood behind him, but Tristan wasn't that stupid when it came to fighting. He followed the noise of footsteps and saw a dark figure behind the smoke and lunged for it. He jumped, close enough to touched, but the figure was gone as fast as it had appeared, and Tristan found himself colliding with something hard and sliding to the ground, out of the smoke screen. He rubbed his bald head, ready to get back on his feet and fight, until he realised just where he had landed and his eyes widened in shock.

"No! I can't be out of the ring!" He looked up at the dust storm dissipating around the short silhouette standing triumphantly with arms crossed and legs spread apart at the border. His narrow eyes stared down at him and he now bore the grin Tristan thought he owned.

"Way to go Atem!" Mokuba leapt from his seat and cheered through cupped hands. Sure, he hated not being the one to defeat Tristan, so easily might he add and by a much smaller person at that, but anything to humiliate the cocky son-of-a-bitch and Mokuba was happy. So seemed to be Serenity and Tea. The short tri-colored haired boy nodded at his friends before turning on his heels and heading back with Seto into the back room serving as an infirmary, leaving a still shell-shocked Tristan staring blankly at the empty stage.

"Well, well, it seems I was right after all! Atem did win!" Pegasus laughed from his seat and Ishizu snorted. Did he say something wrong? Or perhaps he was being childish? He could never tell around that woman, but somehow, he had a feeling she knew more than she _wasn't_ telling.

"You performed well." Seto said as they entered the back room. Marik was still asleep on his stretcher so he made an effort to keep his voice down. "I knew going with smoke bombs was the right way to go with that idiot. Though I must admit you handled it much faster than I thought you would."

"You don't give me enough credit. I might be small, but I know how to fight." The small tri-colored hair boy retorted before his eyes fell upon something – or rather someone – behind the tall CEO of KaibaCorp.

Seto followed his gaze and slightly jumped at the sight of his friend, standing half surprised, half angry and half naked in the doorway leading into the next room.

"What – the hell – have you done?!" Atem spat glaring at the two he considered his friends.

* * *

 **Sorry if the fight scene was a bit short, I needed to be subtle about it being Yugi and that's how it came out.**

 **Tristan with an axe, that came from the filler of season 3 X)**

 **I was originally going to go in detail with how Seto gets Yugi to look like Atem, but I ended up cutting it, it was getting way too long and kinda pointless to the story, I much prefer let you guys think it was Atem actually fighting and then revealing it was Yugi! :P Though I will make this a deleted scene on my deviantart page (what I had written anyway), my username is the same there if anyone is interested. :)**

 **Hope you guys enjoyed it, don't know when the next one will come out but in the meantime you can check out my other story 'Mine' if you like.**

 **Please review, need it as motivation (literally), I'm not going to lie, I legit don't know if this is getting good or not.**


	13. Revelations

**Hey everyone! Thanks for sticking with me even after 3 months of not uploading anything! I got pretty busy in February but for the rest it was mostly laziness. Sorry! I had to go back and read some of my old stuff because it had just been SO long and I had forgotten some pretty important things... like the fact that they're mutants... -_- Ya, not my finest hour.**

 **Btw, SSA stands for Super-Special-Awesome! REMEMBER THAT!**

 **Anyway! Small reminder: Bakura = Ryou Bakura and Marik = Yami Marik.**

 **Enjoy! This chapter is called (for obvious reasons)**

 **Chapter 13: Revelations**

* * *

"What – the hell – have you done?!" Atem spat glaring at the two he considered his friends.

Yugi was at a loss for words. He hadn't expected Atem to be so angry, but what could he say? 'Hey bro, sorry I stripped you of your clothes and took your place in a tournament where I could have easily gotten you disqualified for fraud if people paid closer attention to me?' No. There was only one, logical and rational thing that could save him now.

"Seto made me do it!" Yugi pointed accusingly at the giant beside him.

"Why you little –" The tall teenager muttered angrily under his breath, ready to strangle the ungrateful little runt.

"Kaiba! Is that true?" Atem cut him off, eye twitching and fuming at the idea of his friend putting his possibly/maybe love interest in danger.

Seto knew he was going to be dealing with a tantrum when Atem called him out by his last name. He never did so unless he was incredibly pissed.

He huffed and looked to the side indignantly. "Please, the kid could handle himself. Besides you should be thanking me. I –"

"Thanking you?!" Atem had pinned the CEO against the wall despite the height difference. "You're lucky he's not dead you idiot! You could have just explained to the principal that I was unconscious instead! Why'd you have to risk my spot by having him impersonate me?!"

"Hey!" Yugi huffed, crossing his arms offended and pouting. "I'm not a bad fighter…"

"No Yugi, that's not what I meant…" Atem said in a soothing tone as he walked over to his look-alike with his hands raised in surrender.

"No. No. Don't be afraid to say it Atem, you think I'm weak!" Yugi shouted, pressing a finger against the Egyptian's chest to keep him at distance.

The ceiling intercom rand again and Pegasus announced, "Congratulations Atem for that victory! The next line-up will be Mai vs Weevil. Please be ready in ten. Thank you!" There was a click and Pegasus' voice was gone as fast as he came.

Atem stared at his look-like dumbfounded. Had he heard the principal right? Yugi was… victorious? Yugi simply glared at the Egyptian, annoyed by his lack of faith in him. Atem's mouth was ajar, but no words came out. They remained still for what seemed like hours, until the awkward silence was finally broken by Seto's wild laugh.

"What's so funny?!" Atem yelled at the tall teenager, raising his fist.

"You." He simply replied, hands on his stomach from laughing too hard. "You look ridiculous, taking charge and all in those silly underpants!"

Realisation dawned on Atem as stared down at his white boxers covered with small pink hearts all over them. His face flushed a deep shade of red as he rapidly stepped back and opened a locker to cover his lower region.

Seto loved it when he outdid his little friend, after all, wits were his forte. He gave him a friendly smirk (as friendly as it gets in Seto's books anyway) and turned to exit the room to meet up with his girlfriend.

"C-Could I have my clothes back now?" Atem asked timidly. He wasn't the shy type, but he always had trouble recovering his bold confidence after being humiliated (which wasn't often).

"Whatever." Yugi said as he walked over to his locker and pulled out his clothes before taking off Atem's. "Here." He threw the black tank top and matching sweatpants in his friend's direction, only for them to land awkwardly in Atem's star-shaped hair.

"Thanks." He mumbled, but Yugi shrugged, so Atem grabbed him by the shoulder and spun him around. "Thank you." Atem spoke audibly this time. "I never should have doubted you, I've seen what you can do in gym class and well, what I'm trying to say is… well…"

Yugi shook his hand away. "Just get dressed already."

Atem sighed. This wasn't going well. The two dressed themselves in an awkward silence. Yugi wanted to leave, but he knew he couldn't. Not while he still looked like Atem with his dark skin, bangs spiked up and kohl highlighting his eyes. Damn. He really should have thought this through… When Seto brought him in, he thought it was just so he could support his friend or something… not take his place! Now he won't be able to go out in public at all and miss the carnival, not to mention missing classes too. Shit. Where did Seto even get the spray-on tan from?! Atem was Egyptian… it couldn't be his… could it?

The small boy eyed him curiously. "Why do you use spray tan?" he asked accusingly and the boy's head shot up to meet his eyes, though he immediately regretted it and looked back down.

"Because I'm embarrassed…" he stated, his voice so low it could have been a whisper.

"Because you're embarrassed?" Yugi repeated incredulously, not losing the spiteful edge in his tone.

Atem nodded, but remained silent, annoying his look-alike out of his mind. "Well?!" Yugi shouted, on the verge of losing it. "Well?! What is it Atem? Spit it out, it's not hard!"

"I don't have to explain myself to you!"

Yugi marched up to his friend and shoved him against the locker by the collar of his shirt. "Now you listen here," he started venomously, "I've been dragged into this against my will with no regards of what could happen to me if I was caught or not. The very _least_ you could do, is answer my damn question!"

Atem was stupefied by Yugi's action. It was so unlike the kind caring boy he had met just the other day, but he supposed he was right. It wasn't hard to push him away, but he answered nonetheless. "You're right. I owe you an explanation… I'm not as tan as the other people in my home country because… I'm only half-Egyptian. I was mocked and teased as a kid because my mother was a foreigner, which meant I had to have all of these diseases or something… We moved a lot because of that. I was never really able to make friends, so eventually, my father decided I should just wear a fake tan. It worked out alright after that."

Atem was gazing at the ground, ashamed of his heritage, and Yugi was taken aback by the sad story. "Oh." That was all he could manage. He felt bad for the guy, but he still hadn't forgiven him for insulting him.

"You're not going to tell anyone are you?" Atem asked, daring to glance up at his friend.

Yugi shook his head. "Does anyone else know?" He asked in the same tone.

"Just Marik." Atem smiled and walked over to the stretcher his friend rested on and sat on the edge next to his legs. "He's the only one I ever trusted enough to tell. He's just like me; an Egyptian with a shitty past. We understood each other, you know? I think that's why we were able to become such good friends. I can't believe I'll be fighting him in the quarterfinals."

"Careful now, you sound like you're crushing on him." Yugi teased and tried not to crack a smile as his friend laughed at his joke. No. He was still angry with him. "How did Seto know about your spray can then?

"Oh that," the Egyptian said as his laugh died down, "he caught me buying some once in a convenience store and he just put the pieces together."

"Um hmm." Yugi hummed as he lied against the lockers and crossed his arms.

"What now?" Atem asked, tired of the other's pouting.

"Really? You really want to know what's wrong?!" Yugi spat, shooting daggers with his eyes. "YOU INSULTED ME AND YOU STILL HAVEN'T APOLOGISED!

"I'M SORRY! THERE! ARE YOU HAPPY NOW?! Atem yelled back, standing up and moving to face the other dead in the eyes.

"YES I AM!

"THEN WHY ARE YOU SHOUTING?!"

"I DON'T KNOW!"

"WILL YOU TWO PLEASE, SHUT THE FUCK UP?!"

Yugi and Atem simultaneously turned to meet a dizzy, panting Cecilia in the doorway of the next room, holding a wet cloth soaked with blood and water applied to her temple as her hand glowed a vibrant green. It was quite unusual for the nurse to get mad at student, even less so to swear. Well, at least she said 'please'.

"Nurse Cecelia, you're awake!" Yugi gasped as he made his way over to the woman.

"Yeah, yeah." She said annoyed, but allowed the boy to help support her.

Yugi wasn't sure what to do, he had never seen the woman so upset before. He helped her sit on the bench and removed the cloth to bring her a cleaner one. Atem stood and watched, he had no idea what to do! Back at Darkwing High, he was usually the one _to_ injure and not _get_ injured. Thus, medical attention was not his strong suit.

"Is there anything I can do?" He offered timidly.

"No!" she cut him off abruptly, but then softened up. "No, thank you. I'm fine. I just have a little headache, it'll be gone soon."

Yugi returned with a clean cloth and Cecelia used it to wipe away the dried blood off of her now healed head injury.

"Hum," Yugi began nervously, "Nurse Cecelia, how long have you been awake?"

"Humph, long enough to know it wasn't Atem fighting in that last round." She smiled and raised her shoulders.

"Please don't tell anyone!" Atem begged as he rushed over to Cecelia and took her hands in his.

The woman was startle for a second, but offered the boy a genuine smile. "Don't worry, you're secret is safe with me." Before Atem could thank her, she spoke again. "You should get going if you want to go cheer on your friend." She nudged him. "I'll help Yugi remove that fake tan of his in the meantime."

Atem's blush was ignored as Yugi beamed, "Really?! I thought this stuff could only wash out after a week!" Cecelia shook her head, still smiling and gently pushed the boy towards the door.

"W-Wait! Yugi I really am sor-" Atem said looking back to his friend while still being shown the way out.

"It's okay Atem." Yugi cut him off. That seemed to be becoming a regular thing. "We're cool." He gave him a thumbs up and a wink to which the Egyptian brightened up. He nodded and exited the room.

Seto Kaiba searched for his girlfriend amongst the crowds gathered here and there. Finally, he caught sight of her chatting with two other girls, no doubt some friends she made. Mokuba was there too and… Argh, the mutt. It seemed the blond was always hanging around Mai these days like a lost puppy. Worst of all, she was letting him into her personal space!

Seto stopped in his tracks when he saw Mokuba whispering into Joey's sister's ear. He had hoped his last interference might have scared the girl away from his brother, but it seemed to of have had the opposite effect; they were sitting so close to each other, acting all cuddly and cute like… like… _couples_ do! Blah! Even worse was the fact that he and Joey now seemed to have put whatever differences they had aside. He found it hard to imagine himself doing the same with Serenity, seeing as he had struck her violently the other day…

The CEO of KaibaCorp shot his head up when he heard Mai say his name. "I haven't seen Seto in a while. I wonder if he's okay…" Mai said thoughtfully and this brought a smile on Seto's face. It was good to know she still cared, but his good mood was gone as fast as it came when Joey spoke up.

"Nah, foget about'im Mai! I donno what you two were fightin 'bout earlier, but it was clear he was the one hurtin' ya. If you ask me, ya shouldn't be worrin' 'bout him until _he_ apologises to _you_."

Seto felt cold all over. It was taking every ounce of him not pounce right then and there on the Brooklyn boy. Why didn't he though? Seto would never admit, but deep down, he knew Joey was right. He was hurting Mai over and over again, he was surprised she still put up with him. He remembered the first day they met. They were both sixteen at the time and boarding on the SSA-Kaiba-Cruise. Their fathers had business to discuss concerning Mai's future as a singer. One night in the diner lobby, Seto had watched Mai perform and instantly fell in love with her and her voice. She was beautiful, radiant, and available… He introduced himself and the two became an item shortly afterwards. It was love at first sight… However, their relationship felt rushed, they hadn't taken the time to truly get to know each other before embarking on their relationship. Their personalities often clashed and Seto would get mad. He never hurt her though… physically anyway, but he loved her strong personality. No one ever opposed him so much, or make him work so hard to get what he wants. Mai was special. Things had gone down a spiral ever since she found out she was a mutant and had lost her singing voice. Seto never seemed to love her the same way after that. He always assumed she stayed with him for his money, but he was wrong. He could see that now. Mai truly cared about him still, but if he didn't do something soon, he was going to lose her forever.

The brunet's head shot up again when he heard Tea discussing Yugi's absence. Alright, now was the time to make an entrance. Seto walked up to the gang with his imposing stature, but his voice lacked the confidence his body expression did.

"Yugi and Atem are working some stuff out." He explained briefly.

Everyone nodded, but didn't comment. It seemed that Seto's presence had managed to silence everyone and he hated it. He didn't want to be a buzzkill, he wanted to be part of something. He looked up at Serenity who was holding Mokuba's hands tightly as she trembled. He sighed and bent his torso forward to apologise.

"Serenity, my actions yesterday were uncalled for. I was angry and irritated, but that was no excuse for my behavior and my actions towards you. I don't expect to be forgiven, but I am sorry." He didn't dare mention he had slapped her, but the bruise on her cheek spoke for itself.

"It's okay." She nodded weakly and everyone brightened up at the apology. It was rather unexpected coming from Kaiba.

"Well who knew Koiba here had a heart!" Joey joked, but Seto was not amused.

"Shut up Wheeler."

"Seto, be nice!" Mai slapped his shoulder softly. "Is there another reason as to why you're here?" Mai hoped he had come to apologise to her as well, but didn't get her hopes up. She was too used to being disappointed.

"Now that you mention it, yes." The tall brunet said as he turned to face her. "You'll have to be on your guard against Weevil, I mean, have you ever seen him fight? He's really strong so you won't stand a chance if you don't step up your game."

Mai lowered her head and balled her fists. "Did you just come here to insult me?" She said, trying to hide the quiver in her voice.

Seto didn't seem to understand. "Insult?"

"Koiba that's rude! Don't you have faith in Mai?" Joey added.

"Seto! You should be encouraging her, not trying to bring her down!" Mokuba chimed in. That stung. His own brother coming to the mutt's defense… But what did he do? Wasn't what he said just now encouraging? He was giving Mai some tips, why was everyone turning on him?!

"This is bullshit!" He spat, glaring at everyone turn by turn until he stopped at Joey. "This is all your fault!"

"Hey watch yourself Koiba!" Joey threatened, but a slap across the face, much like the one he had given Serenity, made him lose his footing and tumble to the side.

"Seto! What are you doing?!" Mai screeched. She pushed her boyfriend's chest, making him take a few steps back. "Get out of here, NOW!"

That was it. He crossed a line he could never uncross. No matter what he'd say, Mai would never forgive him, he had truly lost her… This was how it was going to be now. He was a villain without any chance of redemption.

"Fine." He stormed off with whatever pride he had left.

Cecelia walked out of the medic room with Yugi on her heels. She found Bakura at her post and a smile lit his features. It was good to see her well again.

"What did I miss?" Yugi asked the other pale boy watching the next two fighters choosing their weapons. He briefly noticed Weevil removing his taped glasses aside… Pathetic.

"Not much. I think Kaiba was causing a ruckus with the others, but I couldn't hear very well from over here. I think it might have something to do Mai, I mean she looks pretty upset." Bakura said, pointing at their friend. Then, the boy leaned over to whisper in Yugi's ear. "Good job on your victory by the way."

Yugi blushed slightly. "Thanks." He said. It was true, Bakura and Cecelia were the only other people beside Seto and Atem to know about their scheme.

As for the beautiful nurse, she was setting up the next gurney and medical supplies when a strong firm hand spun her around and her lips crashed onto her husbands. Pegasus was not afraid of public display of affection (to a certain limit), even in his work environment. He felt it was important to be able to show someone you cared for them at all times.

"Is everything okay with Rex?" He asked as he wrapped his arms around her waist, though not caring much about the boy. "I heard he had complications."

"Oh yes! That! Hum… well you see…" What was she supposed to say? Like she had explained to Yugi, Rex suddenly woke up when she was running tests on his vital signs and jumped her, hitting her in the head with his extra bone-arm. Rex's actions could easily have him thrown out of school, but that would mean she would have to relate the events and implicate the tri-colored haired boys in her statement. That could unravel their secret arrangement and get Atem disqualified, and she promised to keep their switch a secret. Plus, it would mean extra paperwork… "You don't have to worry about it, everything is fine now."

"If you say so." He kissed his wife on the cheek before returning to his seat and pressing the buzzer to start the match.

Mai and Weevil had taken ten steps away from each other. Mai had chosen a whip for herself and Weevil a corset style metal. She had no idea if there was more to this armor, but sometimes, the items were specifically designed for some abilities, Mai wouldn't be surprised if this was the case.

"Let's get this started shall we?" Weevil said after the force field was set up and the buzzer rang. Mai knew what he meant and followed his lead, both morphed into their respective mutant forms. Mai's arms grew long feathers and stretched until they reached her knees. Her hands and legs turned yellow and rough like a bird's legs and her fingernails and toenails turned to claws. Her footwear consisted of a black sock reaching each side of the foot so the toes and the heels didn't get pierced by her bird feet.

As for Weevil, his outfit consisted of a cheongsam dress ending above the knees that stretched alongside his transformation. He grew into a human-sized arachnid with his silver corset covering fully six of new legs, as well as his torso. That left the head, the front legs and the abdomen open for attack. Mai had seen this form before, but had never engaged battle with it and she knew it wasn't going to be an easy win. The blonde spread open in her arms, shot up in the air and struck down just as fast. She was unsuccessful however, with Weevil leaping forward, leaving Mai's talons to break off with a snap as she collided with the floor.

The harpy screeched, causing the giant arachnid to fumble temporarily in his steps. Luckily, the spectators weren't affected thanks to the force field who blocked the high frequency sound. When Weevil regained his senses, he ejected a silky web out of his spinnerets and trapped his adversary in the sticky substance before charging towards her.

The blonde clawed her way out of the web and jumped out of the way just in time. She sprang to her feet – or rather her toes – but Weevil was ready for her. He caught her by the heels in his web again and tripped her before throwing himself onto her. Weevil tried to bite his way into the beautiful girl's face, but she was persistent in keeping him away. Mai dug her claws into the other's cheeks and pulled upward, tearing at the creature's flesh and forcing it to back up.

Weevil retreated, grabbing Mai's ankle in his mouth as he did so. His strength allowed him to drag her around the stage in an increasing rapid motion. Mai had to hold down her breakfast as she was lifted from the ground and wheezed from her troubled breathing. When the pressure snapped her ankle, she let out a second cry of agony and the shriek had shaken up Weevil's heightened hearing and forced him to release his victim.

Mai knew this was now or never. Her eyes were shut and she was dizzy, but if she didn't act soon, she would be propelled outside the ring. On instincts, she grabbed the whip she kept around her belt and lashed it in a random direction. By luck, it had lashed on to something, probably some part of Weevil, and was pulled back towards him. Through her blurry vision, she made out the arachnid's huge abdomen and dug her claws into it as she flew over him, dragging herself down before rolling over and away from the creature.

Mai lay on her back breathing heavily as she listened to the furry animal's cry switch back to that of a normal boy's. Weevil must have returned to his human form, though that wasn't surprising. With an injury that deep, it would have been difficult for him to maintain such a form. This meant, Weevil was probably out of the game, and all Mai had to do was stand up to be declared the winner.

She sighed, took a deep breath, and opened her eyes. She slowly dragged herself into a sitting position, shaking greatly as she did so, and leaned on her right foot. She took her time standing up, wobbling here and there and coming close to tilting over a couple of times. Mai perked her head up and raised her hand with her fist balled like a champion, sending the crowd into an ecstasy of cheers. The blood back spatter across her body also added to her grandeur. Her victory proved she was a contender amongst the contestants and earned the crowd's respect. There was nothing Mai couldn't handle anymore.

* * *

 **Guys, I had to research spiders for this... be grateful. I bet some of you are also glad Mai and Seto are finally over huh?**

 **There are just so things I would like to ASK YOU before you go:**

 **First: I changed the rating to T. Is that appropriate or not? I was initially going to include sex scenes later on, but I don't feel like there's really any need to with these characters and how things are going... Plus it's not really gory (I think) So T is appropriate right?**

 **Second: Could anyone tell I was trying to replicate Mario spinning Bowser from Super Mario 64?**

 **Please review! :)**


	14. Don't judge me

**Sorry this took so long everyone, it's been almost and entire year last I checked... I worked on this here and there, but it's finally finished. Life keeps me busy, so I don't know when I'll be able to post the next one.**

 **Hope it was worth the wait!**

* * *

"How are you feeling Mai?" Asked Bakura, though it was more for his job than actual friendship.

"Fine, I guess." She muttered, not really in the mood to chat. The fact that she practically terminated her relationship with Seto still ate away at her, even if she knew she was better off. Before she knew it, there were cheers irradiating from the main door and her newly made friends came in to congratulate her.

"Mai that was incredible!" Tea exclaimed.

"You were amazing!" Serenity added.

"I never knew you were so skilled Mai!" Yugi chimed in.

"Bah! I had faith in her da whole time!" Joey said proudly, rubbing his thumb against his nose.

"Guys, that's sweet and all, but I'd rather be alone right now." Said Mai, hiding her disappointment behind her forced smile.

Her friends turned to her in surprised. "What's wrong?" Yugi asked after a short silence.

"Nothing!" She said curtly and Joey took her hand in his.

"Is it because of what happened with Seto?" He asked softly, surprising even himself with his gentleness. Mai didn't speak. She'd always made up excuses for the man's behavior towards her, but she was ready for something more, something warm instead of cold… something – someone like Joey…

She nodded and the boy sighed. He was about to speak when Bakura started. "I'm sorry fellas, but I really need to give Mai her medication now." He said, showing them the device in his hand.

"A shot?" Mai exclaimed, hearing about this for the first time. "I really don't need one, I feel fine!"

"You're healed, it's not the same." The pale boy explained. "If I give you this, you'll have all of your strength back by the next round, not to mention a nice rest."

"Then why don't you give one to Weevil over there? Doesn't he need his strength back too?" She gestured to the boy in the next room being treated by the blonde nurse.

"Well sure, but he's not fighting in the next round, so I'm not authorised to give him the shot. Don't worry Mai, you'll be awake for the round coming up after this one."

The girl winced from the thought of being knocked out by a drug. She really didn't want to take it, she would much rather stay awake for every fight. Then, it hit her, "Wait, if only the winners get the shot, then why isn't Atem resting? He won against Tristan last round!"

Suddenly, all eyes were on Atem, who as of yet, had remained quiet behind the small group of friends. There was no use for the shot since he hadn't been the one to fight, but he couldn't possibly tell _them_ that… He eyed Yugi and Bakura, but as usual, it was Nurse Cecelia who came to his rescue.

"Atem _did_ take the shot." She said as she strolled into the room, leaving a tired Weevil with a hyperactive chained-up Rex. "Since Atem's ability allows him to move at an incredible speed, his nervous systems works the same way with drugs. He was only out for a couple of minutes." Her explanation was quite convincing and actually seemed quite genuine. The others were satisfied with the answer and didn't question it any further, but Bakura couldn't help but wonder what lies she might have told students and gotten away with seeing as how talented she was at lying.

Before he knew it, the pale boy was trapped between a muscular pair of arms that lifted him off of the ground and spun him around.

"I feel great!" Marik exclaimed as he tightened his hold on the white haired boy. "Man! I've never felt better in my life! What on earth did you give me?!"

The gang laughed at the exaggerated gesture. The Egyptian nuzzled the smaller boy's neck as he continued to squeeze the life out of him, but then, he noticed the syringe in his captive's hand and panic swept over him. He snatched the object and threw it against the wall behind them.

"Marik!" Bakura cried as the other's gasped. The taller teen shook his head vigorously with a scared expression distorting his handsome features.

"No! No more needles!" He shouted, swinging his arms in an X shape.

"That wasn't for _you_ dummy." Bakura smacked the other's shoulder annoyingly and crossed his arms. "Now, Mai can't get her shot!"

The gang cheered at the good news, but then, Cecelia stepped up. "Not quite, we have some spare ones in the back room. I'll be right back." The cheers died down in disappointment as she left and returned with a brand new syringe. "I will ask you all to leave now please."

The group of friends nodded and quietly made their way out of the room. Atem had to drag Marik away who kept his eyes locked with the white haired boy. Only Joey remained.

"I just wanted to say, get well Mai."

"I'm not sick you idiot." She giggled with her fist in front of her mouth. "I hope I'll be awake for your fight, but if not, good luck."

"Well I'm glad you still have a sense of humour! And don't worry about me, I'll be just fine!"

With a thumbs up, he spun on his heels and quickly walked out the door.

The next two facing off had been announced five minutes earlier. Serenity had followed Mokuba on the sidelines and had tried to calm him down without success. The boy paced rapidly back and forth with a hand under his chin. Nothing the girl said seemed to be getting to him, it was as though he was in his own little world.

"Do you have a battle strategy?" Asked Serenity, though the boy continued to ignore her.

"I bet Duke will be tough to beat." She added, but the answer was again, silence.

"So… Do you know what weapon you'll choose?" Still no answer.

"… I'm pregnant and Duke's the father!" Serenity exclaimed, making the boy's eyes shoot open with shock. He struggled to find his words, but before he could speak, Serenity raised her hand to keep him quiet.

"Well, I'm glad you were at least listening to me." She said with a roll of her eyes.

Mokuba sighed and took a seat next to her. "I'm sorry. I really want to win, but I can't afford to be distracted."

"I didn't realise I was a distraction." The brunette answered disappointedly, lowering her head.

"You're not! I just meant –" Mokuba said in hopes of cheering her up before he was interrupted by Pegasus's voice beaming trough the speakers.

"I will now invite Mokuba and Duke to join me on stage!" The principal announced.

"Good luck!" Serenity said, all traces of sadness gone from her face.

"Thanks!" The long haired boy jumped from his seat and was one step away from the stage when he gave the pretty brunette one last glance. "Just so we're clear, you're not really pregnant are you?"

Serenity giggled. "What do you think?"

Satisfied, Mokuba ran up to meet the host and his adversary while Serenity met up with her friends. Mokuba decided on a bo-staff while Duke chose a pair of laser beam-shooting gloves. When the buzzer rang and the force field was up, Duke didn't hesitate a second to put his ability to use. His arms stretched out and latched on to Mokuba's bo-staff, tugging him towards him thanks to his superior strength. The small boy was dragged off his feet and he couldn't manoeuvre out of the situation until he got closer to his adversary. Unfortunately, Duke was one step ahead. He launched himself forward, retreating his body to its normal size and struck Mokuba down with a head-butt.

Duke followed by kicking the boy, who was clutching his head on the floor, in the abdomen. Mokuba rolled over a few times to put so distance between them. He stood up hastily, still rubbing the top of his head and glaring up at the boy he detested. Mokuba was determined more than ever to kick his ass now and for good.

He took a fighting stance and waited for Duke to make the first – or rather second – move. The green eyed boy smirked, believing he easily had this one in the bag, and turned to wink and blow a kiss at Serenity. This angered Mokuba who had had enough of jerks trying to show off or take advantage of girls. He grunted and charged towards Duke. His rival saw the assault too late and a fist connected with his cheek. He stumbled backwards and tripped over himself.

Mokuba was walking dangerously close and on instinct, Duke fired the laser beams in his direction. This forced the boy back and gave him time to stand and focus on the task at hand. No more distractions! He fired again, but Mokuba dodged each green beam, slowly making his way forward with side flips and cartwheels. Before he knew it, Mokuba had reached his bo-staff and swung it at Duke's calves, tripping him onto his backside. Mokuba seated himself on Duke's chest and tightened his legs around his middle to minimise his breathing. He then karate-chopped his weapon in half and stabbed each broken side into Dukes hands, breaking his laser-beam gloves and pinning his against the floor.

Duke screamed, but the smaller one's hands found themselves around his throat and squeezed, silencing him. Duke, having found himself trapped, had no other option but to use his legs. He wrapped them around the boy's waist twice and once around his throat to choke him and hopefully push him away. However, Mokuba was persistent and remained on top of Duke even though he could hardly breathe as well. He had a killing-lust-filled desire in his eyes leaving Duke to fear they would both die this day.

Thankfully, Mokuba decided to change things up by smashing into the pretty boy's face. After a few hits, Duke was forced to release the smaller boy when one hit in particular, caused one of his teeth to shoot out of his mouth. The crowd gasped in disgust. It only took two more hits for Mokuba to send the teen out of consciousness, but he continued to swing his fist anyway as well as throwing in some curses. He swung and swung, not caring about the blood splattering back into his face.

"You egocentric monster! You dumbass fucker! Asshole with money! Douchebag shit! I'm going to kill the fuck out of you!"

There were voices telling him to stop, but Mokuba ignored them. He hadn't heard the buzzer go off either nor the sound of footsteps rushing behind him. A strong hand held his arm in place as he struggled to bring it down. His fierce eyes met that of the principal's and he immediately softened up. His eyes wandered to his bloodied hand and the mutilated face of an unrecognisable spoiled rich kid.

Mokuba sprung to his feet. He felt claustrophobic under the crowds' whispered judgments as though he stood in front of a courtroom. It felt like that day all over again… the day he and Seto were brought to court after having been discovered as mutants. They were freaks, unwelcomed by society and sent into exile – sorry – school, at Darkwing High. Back then, Seto had abandoned him, forced him to live on his own. Mokuba hoped, he wouldn't do the same now…

His dark eyes searched frantically for his brother. He was getting dizzy from all the turning around and he began to hyperventilate.

"Mokuba, come with me." Bakura urged him to follow by gently leading him with a hand on his back.

Mokuba hadn't even noticed that Duke had already been taken away until he was seated in the medic room. Nurse Cecilia was just about done repairing his face, though Duke didn't seem too thrilled. Who would be? Once she was done, Duke stood up, flashed Mokuba a death glare and walked out with whatever pride he had left.

On his way out, Mokuba heard someone telling Duke to watch it, it sounded familiar. Walking in was the man Mokuba had been searching for, but no longer wanted to see.

"Sir, you can't be in here!" Nurse Cecelia spoke first.

"Since my company provided most of the equipment for this tournament I think you will agree to spare me five minutes with my brother." Said Seto in an equally authoritative tone.

The blonde contemplated this. She agreed to five minutes and went into the back room with Bakura to give them some privacy.

"What do you want?" Asked Mokuba annoyed as he crossed his arms.

"Isn't it obvious? I wanted to congratulate you on your victory."

A jolt of hope coursed through Mokuba's body and made his eyes pop out of his head. "Really?! You watched me fight?" He said, excited at the idea that Seto was there for him.

Seto looked down and scratched the back of his head. "Well, actually, I only saw you walking off after you were declared the winner." Mokuba's head dropped in disappointment. Tears overwhelmed his eyes hidden under his bangs. "Mokuba, I'm sorry I missed it, but that's no reason to cry! Honestly, I just needed some air and lost track of –"

"Shut up!" Mokuba looked up, eyes red with anger. "Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! SHUT UP! I've had it with your excuses!"

"Mokuba, where is all this coming from?!" Seto tried to reason with his brother, but was cut off again.

"Listen here you self-centered asshole! I've had it with your lame ass abandonment issues! You only ever come to me for work related problems, but what about me?! Huh?! Father abandoned _both_ of us! But I _never_ abandoned you like you did _me_! You don't fucking care about anything but money and girls! I'm just a nuisance to you! I-I fucking hate you!" He stopped his rant to regain his breath and wipe away the tears before speaking again in a low menacing tone. "When I was punching Duke in the face back there, I was visualising you. That's why I couldn't stop myself, that's why I wanted to kill Duke!"

Seto stared dumbfounded at his brother. His mouth was ajar and unable to form a single word.

"Get out!" Mokuba shouted with a finger pointed at the door.

By this time, the nurse and her assistant were handling the situation. Bakura was trying to calm Mokuba while Cecelia politely asked Seto to leave, which he did. Still shell-shocked by his brother's revelation, Seto didn't notice the small brunette waiting outside and bumped into her, sending her crashing to the ground.

"Sorry, I didn't see you there." He held out a hand for Serenity, but the girl shook her head and dusted herself off.

"I bet you are." She said sarcastically, about to walk past him, but was held back by a firm grip around her arm.

"I am." He held her in place for minute, neither saying a word. Serenity shook his hand away and was about to walk in when Seto added "I'm sure you can give him better company than me."

With that, the CEO of KaibaCorp walked away without looking back.

Yugi, Tea, Atem and Joey sat at their usual spot, discussing the upcoming match.

"Aren't you at least a little bit worried about fighting Seto, Joey?" Asked Tea worriedly.

Joey simply crossed his legs and slouched in his chair with his arms crossed behind his head. "Of course Tea! Someone has to put that jerk in his place! He has no right to come walsin' in here like he owns da place. He ain't no more special than us!" Suddenly, he straightened up and his expression became much deeper. "Also, I made a promise to Mai."

"Awe you're too cute Joey!" Tea exclaimed with a hand on her cheek, before returning to her worrisome expression. "But in all seriousness, be careful Joey, Seto is really strong, you could get seriously hurt!"

"I know, I know! Jeez Guys, have a little faith in me will ya!"

"Sorry Joey, good luck in your match, I'm sure you'll do great." Said Yugi as he placed a comforting hand on his friend's shoulder.

Atem, who until then had remained quiet in his seat, rose and began walking down the bench seats.

"Where are you going?" Asked Yugi when he saw Atem had reached ground level.

"I'm going to go find Seto to wish him good luck. It's not that I don't agree with you Joey, but Seto is also my friend and like everyone he deserves support. I'm not asking you to like him or anything, but get to know him before you judge him. That's all I have to say."

His expression was neutral, but his words were harsh. It was true that none of them had really taken the time to have a real conversation with the rich CEO, it was much easier to simply jump to conclusions. Whereas Joey felt betrayed, Tea felt enlightened. Atem was right, Tea was all about friendship and everyone deserved a fair shot, and she would make sure Seto got his…

Serenity closed the door quietly behind her. Mai had just woken up and was congratulating Mokuba on his victory, though he didn't seem proud of it.

"So this means, Joey and Seto are going to fight next…" Said Mai pensively, her eyes staring intensely at the floor.

"Whatever, I don't care…" Said Mokuba, shutting his eyes firmly to remove the image of his brother from his head.

"You _should_ care kid. You and I will be fighting in the next round, and I don't want to fight against someone who isn't going to take me seriously." Said Mai in a motherly-like fashion. "I think I'll leave you two lovebirds alone now."

"We're not lovebirds." Serenity snapped, keeping her eyes on the floor, covered under her bangs.

"All right, all right, sorry." Mai raised her hands in defense, though not really serious about the apology.

"You're not usually this quiet," Said Mokuba, staring tiredly at his crush, "what's wrong with you?"

"What's wrong with _you_?!" Serenity snapped again, her tear-filled eyes meeting Mokuba's. "You almost killed someone! Doesn't that mean anything to you?!"

"Of c-course it does!" Mokuba stuttered, taken aback by her sudden attack. His guilt was already pounding on his conscience, he didn't need to be reminded of that. Yet this cute girl was here, terrorised by his actions. He had to defend himself, he didn't know what else to say. "That asshole had it coming… he…"

"Shut up!" she screamed, unable to hear his excuses. "Will you stop being so vulgar?! It's so hard on the ears! And it's annoying! You told me you hated violence! But the way you were fighting Duke… you're such a liar Mokuba! I'm so tired of people like you taking me so lightly!"

Those words were like darts, successfully striking the center of his heart. It hurt, but he couldn't deny what he had done. Mokuba lowered his head in shame, not wanting her to see him vulnerable.

"Well, aren't you going to say anything?" Serenity's voice was almost begging, but Mokuba remained still and quiet. The girl didn't press the matter any further and exited the room.

Bakura entered from the backroom quietly. "I didn't mean to overhear." He said, feeling awkward. Mokuba shrugged him off and offered his arm to the pale boy, who injected him with the healing drug.


End file.
